The verdict was handed down on Thursday at the Vienna Regional Court for Criminal Matters. The defendants had served under the ousted ruler Bashar al-Assad and were responsible for crimes against opposition figures.
One of the convicted men was the former intelligence chief of the city of Raqqa. The crimes include torture and sexual assaults committed against opponents of the Assad regime.
The trial is based on the principle of universal jurisdiction, which allows the prosecution of serious human rights violations regardless of where they occurred. Austria has applied this principle for years.
Source: www.dw.com
