A 50-year-old man from Ronneby, suspected of committing serious war crimes in Syria, has been acquitted by the Blekinge District Court.

Despite allegations of his involvement in public executions in the town square of al-Sawana, southwest of Palmyra, in 2015, and desecrating a legally protected deceased person, the court found the evidence insufficient for a conviction.

The prosecution argued that the man, purportedly acting on behalf of ISIS, played a role in the city's capture and in collecting weapons from locals.

However, the court stated that the proof, mainly based on eyewitness accounts, was not strong enough to determine his specific actions in the alleged crimes.

The man, who was arrested and detained in March 2023, has consistently denied the accusations, claiming coercion by ISIS for certain tasks.