Syria’s Ministry of Justice recently announced the formation of a dedicated “Extradition Committee” to liaise with Interpol on individuals wanted by national authorities, alongside establishing transitional-justice complaint offices and initiating efforts to recover allegedly embezzled public assets transferred abroad. Although the step signals an attempt to introduce institutional structure into a sensitive legal file, it does not create an international mechanism for arrest or extradition. The announcement offered no details on the committee’s composition, legal mandate, targeted individuals, operational procedures or the status of existing red notices and extradition requests.
International police cooperation operates on principles fundamentally different from domestic law enforcement. Interpol functions solely as an administrative network linking national police agencies; it has no authority to issue binding international arrest warrants, direct extradition proceedings, determine criminal liability or compel member states to surrender suspects. The Syrian National Central Bureau in Damascus, which has represented Syria since its accession in June 1953, serves only as a secure communication channel between domestic authorities and Interpol’s global system. It does not exercise extraterritorial enforcement powers.
At the core of this system is the Red Notice, a request circulated globally asking law-enforcement agencies to locate and provisionally arrest a person pending extradition or similar legal action. A Red Notice is not an international arrest warrant. The individual remains wanted exclusively by the requesting state or court, and each receiving country retains full sovereignty to decide whether to execute provisional detention or proceed with extradition under its own legal framework.
Securing an extradition through Interpol requires a multi-stage legal process. Syrian judicial authorities must first issue a valid domestic arrest warrant or judicial ruling, accompanied by a dossier detailing the suspect’s identity, alleged conduct, applicable criminal provisions and jurisdictional basis. Interpol then reviews the request for compliance with its Constitution and data-processing rules. If the individual is located, the host country determines whether its domestic law permits provisional detention, after which Syria must pursue formal extradition through that country’s judicial system.
The Extradition Committee’s practical value lies in standardizing case files, managing translations and coordinating judicial, police, prosecutorial and diplomatic efforts. Yet procedural coordination cannot compensate for evidentiary gaps, invalid domestic rulings or structural legal deficiencies. Under Interpol regulations, requests cannot be based on political affiliation, official status or membership in a former governing regime. They must demonstrate individual criminal liability supported by clear, legally sound allegations.
Interpol’s regulatory framework imposes further constraints. Red Notices require allegations involving serious ordinary-law crimes that meet specific penalty thresholds, supported by sufficient identification and judicial documentation. Article 3 of Interpol’s Constitution strictly prohibits intervention or activities of a political, military, religious or racial character, while Article 2 mandates adherence to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Although offenses committed by former officials during conflicts or political transitions are not automatically excluded, Interpol evaluates whether the ordinary criminal nature of the alleged conduct outweighs its political context before approving any request.
Fadel Abdulghany is Founder and Head of the Syrian Network for Human Rights from June 2011 to date.
This article was translated and edited by The Syrian Observer. The Syrian Observer has not verified the content of this story. Responsibility for the information and views set out in this article lies entirely with the author.
