A Syrian court has sentenced ousted dictator Bashar al-Assad to death in absentia, after convicting him of committing war crimes and crimes against humanity during the country's civil war. Assad's cousin and the former head of political security in southern Syria's Deraa province, Atef Najib, was also sentenced to death. He was convicted of crimes including murder, "the intentional killing of children under 15" and "torture leading to death". The court also sentenced six former military and security officials in absentia to death, including Bashar al-Assad's younger brother, Maher. He ran the army's elite Fourth Division and also fled to Moscow when the regime fell.