(Translation by Yusra Ahmed)
A newly-freed prisoner from the central prison in Sweida talked about the unbelievable violations inside the prison.
Issa, the nickname of the speaker to Zaman al-Wasl, he is a university student from the province of Damascus countryside was arrested by the Syrian regime forces early in 2013 because of his participation and coordinating demonstrations. He spent nearly two years behind bars where he moved between several branches and ended up in the central prison of Sweida.
Issa reported that corruption, theft, drug dealing, killing prisoners and other crimes were the most prominent practices inside the prison, but the surprising fact is that they took place in a civilian prison which is supposed to be subject to the supervision of human rights, local and international humanitarian organizations.
about the structure of the prison, it consists of two towers of 4 floors each, each tower has a courtyard and a special wing for adolescents (under 18-year old) and another for women. There is a special independent internal large room to punish the disobedient for a period of 3 months after finishing detention in singular cells. There is another private external independent lounge for the Islamists detained before the Syrian revolution.
There is a buffet as well in each tower supervised mainly by Nimir al-Assad with other influential persons likes Ismail Wardeh, Khaled al-Nammol and Fadel Abo Jabal.
Nimir al-Assad is detained on charges of drug, he is considered one of the most influential people in the prison, he manages drug dealing with detainees, he has an internal network for this purpose also in collaboration with some detainees on charges of drug dealing. Moreover, the cooperation and coordination with the prison’s officers to blackmail prisoners and fabricate new charges in order to obtain money from them.
There are roughly 13 officers in charge in the prison, making a "gang", according to Issa’s description, where their main concern is making money, torturing and humiliating detainees.
Brigadier General Ziad Bakro, the prison’s director from Aleppo.
- Major Bashar al-Habib, deputy of prison’s director from Jebleh near Latakia, he was disqualified from service because he caused deaths to two people of torture in the Security branch in Bab Mosala in but he returned to his work in Swieda prison at the beginning of the revolution.
- Captain Safwan from the coastal region of Syria.
- Captain Saad al-Olayan from Qonaitra.
- Captain in charge of medical care from Sweida.
- Lieutenant Abdul Latif from Idlib
- Lieutenant Yasser from Jebleh.
- Lieutenant Tariq Abu Ismail
- Lieutenant Ayham from the coastal region.
- Lieutenant easy Shawki of Sahl Alghab in Hama
- Anthony lieutenant from the village of Sadad in Homs
- Lieutenant Thaer from Homs
- Lieutenant Mohammed Al-Mohammad from Jebleh, he has been recently transferred to a battalion near prison.
Two officers do the daily on-call in prison according to Issa, however, the biggest influence is kept to the prison’s director and his two deputies, Lieutenant "Tareq Abu Ismail and Mohammed al-Mohammad, as they get the "lion's share" of money gained by extortion and receiving bribes from detained to improved services. Many officers practice usury trade with the prisoners through debt with high interest, while others trade in drugs and alcohol with the detainees, such as captain Safwan.
Officers usually use each minor dispute between prisoners to intimidation detainees of taking them to interrogation and blackmail them to pay money.
The newly freed prisoner mentioned that any problem is solved with money, and bribes, as they are active component of all decisions and actions of prison officers.
The prison management tend to give prisoners inadequate amount of meal to force them to buy food from the buffet, which is invested by Mohamed Khairi known of "Agha" and most the buffet’s profits go to the prison’s director. It is estimated that its monthly income reached to 600 thousand Syrian pounds and two-thirds of this amount goes to the prison's director, while the rest is distributed to remaining officers according to their influence and Khairi gets special treatment by the director.
Another problem of the buffet is selling expired food because of their low whole sale prices when purchasing them.
The primary supplier of goods contracted with the prison is called Fadi Sabbagh, he deals with many shops and traders in Sweida and buy expired goods at cheap prices, and all that is being done with approval of the prison’s director.
Issa noted that the buffet management tended to conceal the date of expiration of food by selling many good after emptying their contents in bags, however, some goods cannot be sold separately from their covers, on which prisoners discovered expiration date, but in the end they are forced to buy them as there is no alternative.
The regime officials’ greediness did not stop at selling expired food, they used water and the need for it to generate more money.
The prison’s management used to cutting off the water supply and stopped pumps to prevent water to reach to high floors, therefore, prisoners were forced to buy washing and drinking water and most the profits go to the director. Furthermore, a laundry was used to force prisoners to wash their clothes there
the speaker mentioned the suffering of detainees in Sweida central prison of diseases resulted from bad food , expired goods and unclean drinking water, leading to infections and disease like vomiting, hepatitis, food poisoning. Issa mentioned that many of his friends died after contracting disease in the prison.
In regard to medical care, Issa mentions several examples about controlling the medical care by the prison’s management to make another source of profits. All consultations, treatment and medications must be paid for. The medical service in the prison is delivered by a doctor of captain rank, as well as a dentist contracted from outside the prison, and they share the profits with the director of the prison.
Issa recalled a painful incident when a prisoners suffered of tooth ache, but the dentist took off all his teeth to force him to use a denture which costs lots of money.
The former prisoner reported that the doctor committed crimes and killed some prisoners by orders of Brigadier General or Lieutenant Mohammed Mohammed.
In this regard said, told a story of killing Isam Kaddoura from Douma, in June 2013, as Kaddoura suffers of an incurable disease in his head and he needed to take medicine for treatment, however, the dentist under orders of the investigation officer stop that medication, which led to d deterioration of his health, after that the doctor injected him with a medicine and then was taken to a singular cell. Kaddoura then was subject to torturing led to his death.
Mohammed Mohammed warned prisoners of telling the truth and demanded them to say that he had committed suicide by hitting his head with wall, before the arrival of the coroner to write a cause of death and they.
In regard to ways the prison’s management use to avoid censorship and observation by human rights organizations and committees of inspection of the Interior Ministry, because it is a civil and declared prisons. Issa said that all inspections procedures are superficial and official only, as the prisons’ administration is notified in advance and therefore takes action by prison officials, such as improving the quality and amount of food as well as drinking water, besides improving hygiene care and cleanness of the place. Most of the times people for outside the prison are used to act as representatives in front of the inspection, moreover, the rest of prisoners are threatened of consequences of saying anything about the real circumstances and their sufferings.
A newly-freed prisoner from the central prison in Sweida talked about the unbelievable violations inside the prison.
Issa, the nickname of the speaker to Zaman al-Wasl, he is a university student from the province of Damascus countryside was arrested by the Syrian regime forces early in 2013 because of his participation and coordinating demonstrations. He spent nearly two years behind bars where he moved between several branches and ended up in the central prison of Sweida.
Issa reported that corruption, theft, drug dealing, killing prisoners and other crimes were the most prominent practices inside the prison, but the surprising fact is that they took place in a civilian prison which is supposed to be subject to the supervision of human rights, local and international humanitarian organizations.
about the structure of the prison, it consists of two towers of 4 floors each, each tower has a courtyard and a special wing for adolescents (under 18-year old) and another for women. There is a special independent internal large room to punish the disobedient for a period of 3 months after finishing detention in singular cells. There is another private external independent lounge for the Islamists detained before the Syrian revolution.
There is a buffet as well in each tower supervised mainly by Nimir al-Assad with other influential persons likes Ismail Wardeh, Khaled al-Nammol and Fadel Abo Jabal.
Nimir al-Assad is detained on charges of drug, he is considered one of the most influential people in the prison, he manages drug dealing with detainees, he has an internal network for this purpose also in collaboration with some detainees on charges of drug dealing. Moreover, the cooperation and coordination with the prison’s officers to blackmail prisoners and fabricate new charges in order to obtain money from them.
There are roughly 13 officers in charge in the prison, making a "gang", according to Issa’s description, where their main concern is making money, torturing and humiliating detainees.
Brigadier General Ziad Bakro, the prison’s director from Aleppo.
- Major Bashar al-Habib, deputy of prison’s director from Jebleh near Latakia, he was disqualified from service because he caused deaths to two people of torture in the Security branch in Bab Mosala in but he returned to his work in Swieda prison at the beginning of the revolution.
- Captain Safwan from the coastal region of Syria.
- Captain Saad al-Olayan from Qonaitra.
- Captain in charge of medical care from Sweida.
- Lieutenant Abdul Latif from Idlib
- Lieutenant Yasser from Jebleh.
- Lieutenant Tariq Abu Ismail
- Lieutenant Ayham from the coastal region.
- Lieutenant easy Shawki of Sahl Alghab in Hama
- Anthony lieutenant from the village of Sadad in Homs
- Lieutenant Thaer from Homs
- Lieutenant Mohammed Al-Mohammad from Jebleh, he has been recently transferred to a battalion near prison.
Two officers do the daily on-call in prison according to Issa, however, the biggest influence is kept to the prison’s director and his two deputies, Lieutenant "Tareq Abu Ismail and Mohammed al-Mohammad, as they get the "lion's share" of money gained by extortion and receiving bribes from detained to improved services. Many officers practice usury trade with the prisoners through debt with high interest, while others trade in drugs and alcohol with the detainees, such as captain Safwan.
Officers usually use each minor dispute between prisoners to intimidation detainees of taking them to interrogation and blackmail them to pay money.
The newly freed prisoner mentioned that any problem is solved with money, and bribes, as they are active component of all decisions and actions of prison officers.
The prison management tend to give prisoners inadequate amount of meal to force them to buy food from the buffet, which is invested by Mohamed Khairi known of "Agha" and most the buffet’s profits go to the prison’s director. It is estimated that its monthly income reached to 600 thousand Syrian pounds and two-thirds of this amount goes to the prison's director, while the rest is distributed to remaining officers according to their influence and Khairi gets special treatment by the director.
Another problem of the buffet is selling expired food because of their low whole sale prices when purchasing them.
The primary supplier of goods contracted with the prison is called Fadi Sabbagh, he deals with many shops and traders in Sweida and buy expired goods at cheap prices, and all that is being done with approval of the prison’s director.
Issa noted that the buffet management tended to conceal the date of expiration of food by selling many good after emptying their contents in bags, however, some goods cannot be sold separately from their covers, on which prisoners discovered expiration date, but in the end they are forced to buy them as there is no alternative.
The regime officials’ greediness did not stop at selling expired food, they used water and the need for it to generate more money.
The prison’s management used to cutting off the water supply and stopped pumps to prevent water to reach to high floors, therefore, prisoners were forced to buy washing and drinking water and most the profits go to the director. Furthermore, a laundry was used to force prisoners to wash their clothes there
the speaker mentioned the suffering of detainees in Sweida central prison of diseases resulted from bad food , expired goods and unclean drinking water, leading to infections and disease like vomiting, hepatitis, food poisoning. Issa mentioned that many of his friends died after contracting disease in the prison.
In regard to medical care, Issa mentions several examples about controlling the medical care by the prison’s management to make another source of profits. All consultations, treatment and medications must be paid for. The medical service in the prison is delivered by a doctor of captain rank, as well as a dentist contracted from outside the prison, and they share the profits with the director of the prison.
Issa recalled a painful incident when a prisoners suffered of tooth ache, but the dentist took off all his teeth to force him to use a denture which costs lots of money.
The former prisoner reported that the doctor committed crimes and killed some prisoners by orders of Brigadier General or Lieutenant Mohammed Mohammed.
In this regard said, told a story of killing Isam Kaddoura from Douma, in June 2013, as Kaddoura suffers of an incurable disease in his head and he needed to take medicine for treatment, however, the dentist under orders of the investigation officer stop that medication, which led to d deterioration of his health, after that the doctor injected him with a medicine and then was taken to a singular cell. Kaddoura then was subject to torturing led to his death.
Mohammed Mohammed warned prisoners of telling the truth and demanded them to say that he had committed suicide by hitting his head with wall, before the arrival of the coroner to write a cause of death and they.
In regard to ways the prison’s management use to avoid censorship and observation by human rights organizations and committees of inspection of the Interior Ministry, because it is a civil and declared prisons. Issa said that all inspections procedures are superficial and official only, as the prisons’ administration is notified in advance and therefore takes action by prison officials, such as improving the quality and amount of food as well as drinking water, besides improving hygiene care and cleanness of the place. Most of the times people for outside the prison are used to act as representatives in front of the inspection, moreover, the rest of prisoners are threatened of consequences of saying anything about the real circumstances and their sufferings.
Zaman Al Wasl
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