Samir Osman Alshaikh, a former Syrian prison director, faces U.S. criminal charges related to torture during his tenure in Damascus from 2005 to 2008. Accusations include inflicting severe physical and mental pain on detainees, including orders for torture and personal involvement. The charges come shortly after the fall of Bashar al-Assad’s regime. Alshaikh, who sought U.S. citizenship in 2023, has been in custody since 2024 after allegedly lying to authorities about his past.