Position
- Former senior military leader and commander within the National Defence Forces (NDF), particularly active in Damascus and later across multiple Syrian regions.
Association
- National Defence Forces (NDF) — a pro-Assad paramilitary militia.
- Operational and logistical ties to Iran-backed militias and advisors, with Iranian support playing a key role in NDF expansion and sustainment.
Loyalty:
- Loyal to the Bashar al-Assad regime throughout the Syrian civil war; served in militia leadership and later cooperated with post-Assad transitional committees.
Most Notorious Crimes:
- 2013 Tadamon massacre: Accused by victims, activists, and independent reporting of involvement in the execution of civilians in the Tadamon neighbourhood of Damascus.
- Torture, murder, and detention abuses: Human rights groups and civil society activists have linked forces under his command to systematic abuses in NDF-controlled areas.
Profile
Fadi Saqr became a prominent militia commander in Damascus during the Syrian civil war. Originating from the Tadamon neighborhood, he rose rapidly within the National Defence Forces, becoming a key figure in the regime’s paramilitary strategy. Known for his brutality and effectiveness from the regime’s perspective, he was reportedly nicknamed “The Eagle of the National Defence” by pro-regime circles.
Saqr’s legacy is inseparable from the Tadamon massacre, where civilians were rounded up, executed, and buried in mass graves. Video evidence and testimonies documenting the crime were revealed, with Saqr being widely accused of planning and overseeing the operation. Despite his arrest after the fall of the Assad regime, his subsequent release has sparked outrage among survivors, families of victims, and human-rights organizations, who view his freedom as emblematic of impunity.
Identity
Full Name: Fadi Malik Ahmad Saqr (commonly known as Fadi Saqr)
Arabic: فادي صقر
Date of Birth: 1974
Nationality: Syrian
Nickname: “The Eagle of the National Defence”
Career Timeline
- 2012–2013: Rose to prominence as a commander within the National Defence Forces, particularly active in Damascus and surrounding areas.
- 2013: Linked by local witnesses, activists, and civil society to the Tadamon massacre, one of the conflict’s most brutal episodes.
- 2025: Saqr has been included in national reconciliation processes and civil peace committees rather than being prosecuted.
Crimes & Responsibility
- Saqr is widely accused of involvement in the Tadamon massacre, where dozens to hundreds of civilians were executed and their bodies secretly buried. Activists and civil society sources connect NDF units under his command to these crimes.
- Syrian Network for Human Rights has documented torture, extrajudicial killings, and abuses in NDF-controlled detention facilities and operational zones, with Saqr’s leadership implicated in operational chains of command during key violent episodes of the civil war.