The National Council for Transitional Justice announced the arrest of Ali Kayali, known as "Ma'raj Oural," a commander of militias loyal to the ousted regime, in a move described by lawyer Radif Mustafa as extending beyond the security dimension to include political and national dimensions, noting that the charges against him extend beyond Syrian borders to include Turkey and Lebanon.
Kayali was born in 1956 in the Hatay province of Turkey, and joined an armed leftist organization during the 1970s, before fleeing to Syria in 1982, where he obtained Syrian citizenship and close ties with the Assad family. He participated in battles in Lebanon in 1982, and later led the "Syrian Resistance – Popular Front for the Liberation of Iskenderun" militia during the years of the Syrian revolution.
Sources indicated Kayali's involvement in the 2013 Reyhanli bombing in Turkey, which killed 53 people. His name was also linked to the Bayda and Ras al-Nu'ab massacres in Baniyas in 2013, where the Syrian Network for Human Rights documented the killing of 459 civilians, including 92 children and 71 women, while Human Rights Watch confirmed the execution of at least 248 people in those events.
The director of the Accountability and Justice Department at the National Council for Transitional Justice emphasized that Kayali's arrest sends a clear message that there is no room for impunity, and confirms Syria's commitment to combating terrorism and enhancing the security of regional countries, as well as safeguarding international peace and security.
Source: Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA)
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