Where is Bashar al-Assad? Ousted Syrian dictator sentenced to death in absentia

Synrian Ex-president Bashar Assad (2019 photo) A Syrian criminal court in Damascus has sentenced ousted president Bashar al-Assad to death in absentia after finding him guilty of killings, torture, arbitrary arrests and crimes against humanity committed during the country's nearly 14-year civil war. The verdict, delivered on Tuesday, August 11, marks the first conviction against Assad by Syria's transitional authorities since his regime collapsed in December 2024. But while the court has pronounced a death sentence, the former Syrian ruler remains far beyond the reach of the authorities who now control Damascus.Assad is currently in Russia, where he and his family were granted asylum after fleeing Syria when rebel forces captured Damascus in December 2024. His precise location inside Russia has not been publicly confirmed. However, reporting over the past year has placed the former dictator in Moscow, with sources previously indicating that his family was likely living in the heavily guarded Rublyovka area, an affluent district on the western outskirts of the Russian capital.The death sentence therefore raises a central question: where is Bashar al-Assad now, and can Syria ever bri...