Syria abolishes al-Assad-era ‘terrorism’ court as Kurdish tensions flare

Discontent is testing President Ahmed al-Sharaa’s ability to unify a country emerging from 14 years of conflict.Syria’s parliament ‌has voted to abolish an al-Assad-era “terrorism” court and nullify the ⁠legal effects of ⁠its rulings, in one of the first significant legislative moves by the country’s new assembly.The vote on Wednesday formalised the abolition of the court, which Syria’s new authorities had already treated as defunct, state-run Al-Ekhbariya TV reported.Recommended Stories list of 3 itemslist 1 of 3Explosion at depot storing weapons left from Syria war kills 14list 2 of 3Kurdish YPJ women fighters face exclusion from Syria’s new armylist 3 of 3At least seven killed in fire at prison in northern Syriaend of listThe Counter-Terrorism Court, ⁠established in 2012, was used to prosecute thousands of Syrians for offences deemed “terrorism-related” ⁠under ousted former President Bashar al-Assad.Wednesday’s vote came during the opening ⁠weeks of the first parliament formed since al-Assad was toppled. The chamber convened for the first time in July.In June 2025, President Ahmed al-Sharaa issued a decree dismissing 67 judges who had served in what he described at the time as t...