German court finds Syrian colonel guilty of crimes against humanity

A German court has sentenced a Syrian colonel to life in prison for crimes against humanity in a historic trial.

Anwar Raslan, 58, was linked to the torture of over 4,000 people in Syria's civil war in a jail known as "Hell on Earth".

The trial in Koblenz is the world's first criminal case brought over state-led torture in Syria.

UN rights chief Michelle Bachelet praised the conviction as a "landmark leap forward" in the pursuit of truth.