LONDON: Security forces in the Syrian Arab Republic arrested Zakaria Mohammad Sannoun, a former air force pilot under the Bashar Assad regime, for committing crimes against Syrians during the civil war.

Sannoun held the rank of brigadier general and served as the head of the Operations Branch of the 22nd Division under the former regime. Authorities accuse him of conducting airstrikes against civilians between 2012 and 2020, according to the Syrian Arab News Agency.

Syria’s Internal Security Forces said on Sunday that Sannoun directly oversaw operations at three military airbases affiliated with the 22nd Division: Hama Military Airbase, Tiyas Airbase (T-4 Airbase), and Shayrat Military Airbase.

The Assad-era air force conducted a series of airstrikes on civilian and rebel-held areas during the country’s civil war between 2011 and 2024. Some operations involved the dropping of barrels filled with high explosives and shrapnel on civilians from aircraft. The regime’s brutal crackdown against civilians during the country’s 13 years of civil war killed more than 580,000 people and forcibly displaced 13 million, according to the UN.

Early in September, authorities arrested nine former military pilots accused of taking part in airstrikes as the post-Assad government steps up efforts to hold alleged perpetrators accountable for crimes against Syrians.