Investigations and Case Building

Based upon its large repository of evidence collected from hundreds of detailed witness interviews, primary documents from Syria, and more than one million open-source videos, SJAC has provided data and expertise to a number of justice efforts. SJAC has established working relationships with war crimes units in Europe as well as the Europol AP CIC and the International, Independent and Impartial Mechanism (IIIM) and regularly responds to inquiries in particular cases with concrete evidence. SJAC has also established an investigative team to build cases against particular suspects who are within the reach of existing justice mechanisms. SJAC leverages all of the tools at its disposal, relying heavily on its purpose-built data management software, Bayanat, to assess and build linkages between evidence. SJAC's legal team analyzes this evidence and presents it to relevant authorities within the proper context.

Universal Jurisdiction

Through the project, Advancing Accountability for Syrian War Crimes Through Universal Jurisdiction: A Victim-Centered Approach, SJAC connects Syrians in Europe with national authorities working to prosecute individuals for crimes they committed in Syria. The project focuses on Germany, Netherlands, Belgium, and France because they have sizeable Syrian communities and because they allow for crimes that occurred outside of their borders to be prosecuted in their domestic courts (known as universal jurisdiction). Additionally, SJAC pays for legal aid, as well as psychosocial support, for individuals who choose to come forward with information on crimes committed in Syria.