Syria’s New Justice Minister ‘Oversaw Execution Of Women For Prostitution’

Via Middle East Eye

Syria’s interim justice minister has come under scrutiny following the resurfacing of old videos reportedly showing him reading execution sentences in Idlib.

The videos, verified by the fact-checking network Verify-sy, appear to show Shadi al-Waisi reading the execution sentences of two women charged with “corruption and prostitution” in 2015.

“The platform Verify-sy conducted a thorough verification process using specialized technical tools to match the features and tone of voice clearly heard in at least one of the videos, with the features and voice of [Justice] Minister Shadi al-Waisi, who had recently appeared in several filmed interviews,” the network said in a statement. “The results showed a high degree of match, despite the poor quality of the circulated recordings.”

Verify-sy also reached out to several parties in the new Syrian government, with an anonymous senior official confirming that the man in the videos is Waisi.

The source said Waisi was a judge at the time. The Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS)-led government has not commented on the footage. 

“The content of the video presented to us documents the enforcement of the law at a specific time and place, where the procedures were carried out in accordance with the laws in effect at that time and as part of a procedural agreement,” the source said.

Don’t worry, the video clearly showing Al Qaeda-appointed Syrian Minister of Justice Shadi al-Waisi sentencing a woman to be publicly shot in the head is just “part of a previous phase” https://t.co/vhlUa4AvZb

— Max Blumenthal (@MaxBlumenthal) January 5, 2025

“However, we would like to point out that this process reflects a stage we have moved beyond in light of the current legal and procedural transformations, which makes it inappropriate to generalize it or use it to describe the current stage, given the differing circumstances and references.” 

The resurfaced footage has been met with widespread criticism online from many Syrians who were previously critical of Bashar al-Assad and his government.

Warning: graphic footage

CONFIRMED:

Syria’s Interim Justice Minister Shadi Al-Waisi, is seen sentencing/overseeing death penalty of women for adultery/prostitution, as a part of Al Nusra Front’s application of Sharia law back in January 2015 in areas the front controlled in Idlib.

– The first video was… pic.twitter.com/00R36qXt8g

— Rami Jarrah (@RamiJarrah) January 4, 2025

“If [HTS leader Ahmed] al-Sharaa opposes punitive measures of this nature, he needs to signal this to the hardline Islamists in Syria who aspire for it,” Syrian journalist Rami Jarrah wrote on X.

Some have questioned whether such punitive measures will be permitted under Syria’s new administration, while others have called for Waisi to be removed from office.