The International Criminal Court's (ICC) chief prosecutor Karim Khan arrived in Syria on Friday to meet with the country's new leader, Ahmad al-Sharaa.
Seeking justice: new Syrian leaders meet with ICC chief prosecutor in Damascus
Karim Khan, Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court looks up prior to a press conference in The Hague, Netherlands, Monday, July 3, 2023.
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Khan's visit is part of the transitional government's quest to ensure accountability for alleged war crimes committed during the civil war.
More than half a million died and another six milliion people were displaced during the conflict.
According to human rights groups, a further estimated 150,000 people have disappeared during the war, with many thought missing in Assad's prison network. Exact numbers remain unknown.
Syria has also been the site of chemical weapons attacks, notably using chlorine gas, against civilians.
The new autorities have called for members of the Assad regime to be brought to justice.
Previous attempts to deal with Syria were unsuccessful, as the ICC does not have jurisdiction over Syria. Damascus has never signed the Rome Statute, the court's founding treaty.
Referrals of the issue by the United Nations' Security Council to the ICC - which would have given it jurisdiction - were blocked by China and Russia.