SYRIA NEWS | ZAMAN ALWSL

Raqqa: Interior Ministry organizes visits for relatives of inmates at Al-Aqtan prison

Mon, 02 Feb 2026 14:34:00 +0300

The Prisons and Correctional Facilities Administration organized a visit for a number of inmates' families at Al-Aqtan Prison in Raqqa Governorate, as part of its approved periodic visitation program.

The Ministry of Interior explained in a post on its official channels today, Monday, that the visits took place in an organized manner, in accordance with the applicable security and health regulations and procedures. All necessary facilities were provided to ensure a smooth entry and exit process and to create a suitable environment that allowed inmates to meet with their families in appropriate conditions.

The Ministry emphasized that these visits are part of its efforts to strengthen the humanitarian aspects within correctional institutions and its commitment to supporting the family and social ties of inmates.

It also noted its continued efforts to develop services within correctional and rehabilitation institutions, in line with the Ministry's vision of supporting rehabilitation and social reintegration.

On the 23rd of last month, the Prisons and Correctional Facilities Administration of the Ministry of Interior took control of al-Aqtan Prison in Raqqa Governorate, which had been under the control of the SDF (Syrian Democratic Forces). It immediately began a thorough and comprehensive review of the prisoners' conditions and their personal and legal files to ensure that legal procedures are applied to all detainees.

Zaman al-Wasl

Former detainees suffer consequences of Assad terrorism court

Sun, 01 Feb 2026 16:32:00 +0300

Despite the passage of more than a year since the fall of the Syrian regime on December 8, 2014, a large number of former detainees continue to suffer the consequences of the "Terrorism Court" cases, precautionary seizures, and financial penalties imposed on them during the rule of the ousted regime. This situation reflects the ongoing difficulties in dismantling the administrative and judicial structures that were used as tools of repression.

Ahmed Rahban al-Rahban, from the occupied Golan Heights and residing in Daraa camp, confirmed to Zaman al-Wasl that he was recently surprised to find a precautionary seizure on his assets while attempting to sell a car, despite having been released from prison years ago and officially discharged from military service with a clearance certificate.

He explained that the Homs Finance Directorate informed him of outstanding fines registered in his name related to military ammunition—the value of which he must pay—dating back to the period when he was detained in Tadmor Military Prison.

He added that he remains under a travel ban and deprived of his civil rights, along with other former military personnel involved in similar cases, without any clear mechanism to overturn the decisions issued by the Terrorism Court or to restore the victims' legal standing.

According to al-Rahban, the fall of the regime was not accompanied by a comprehensive review of the asset freeze and fines imposed on political detainees and military defectors or those who opposed corruption. This has left thousands of cases pending within the financial and criminal records departments, leaving the victims in a state of economic and legal paralysis.

Al-Rahban called on the Ministry of Justice to urgently open an investigation into the consequences of the previous "Terrorism Courts," issue collective decisions to lift the precautionary asset freezes, cancel the fictitious fines, and restore the civil rights of those affected, while holding accountable those responsible for fabricating the security cases.

He affirmed that he possesses official documents, including security reports and investigation records preserved in the archives of the former Terrorism Court, proving the fabrication of charges against his group, in addition to fine records related to weapons depots registered under the names of detainees.

The monks concluded by saying that "overthrowing the regime is not complete by removing its symbols alone, but by dismantling its instruments," emphasizing that the continued detention, travel bans, and fines mean that the victims are still being punished, while the perpetrators move about freely.

Zaman al-Wasl

Excuse me, Ministry of Justice: Where is the crime?

Tue, 16 Dec 2025 12:27:00 +0300

The Ministry of Justice issued a circular on January 5, 2025, urging Syrians to hand over any evidence they have or may come into possession of to public prosecutors for preservation. This is undoubtedly a sound position from the Syrian Ministry of Justice.

However, the new Circular No. 24, issued on December 15, 2025 (which emphasizes the importance of preserving evidence related to missing and forcibly disappeared persons), went so far as to consider the publication of documents through print or online investigative journalism a crime against state security. It even indicated that the penalty for these criminal acts would be severe under Article 247 of the Penal Code and Paragraph (c) of Article 33 of the Cybercrime Law. But before there can be a severe penalty, there must be a crime.

In principle, we agree with the Ministry of Justice's circular that using this information for an unlawful purpose constitutes a crime. However, the press obtaining and publishing this information constitutes a legitimate reason, and the press cannot be punished for it.

The question here is: Is this information inherently confidential, such that its publication constitutes a crime? Does it meet the conditions stipulated in the Code of Criminal Procedure to be an exception to the principle of transparency during judicial investigations, or subject to precautionary or urgent measures to preserve evidence?

Leaving aside this question, Circular No. 24 actually relied on the following articles of the Syrian Penal Code:

Articles 271 and 272 of the Penal Code stipulate that for a crime to be committed, there must be intent to enter a restricted area to steal or obtain documents that must remain confidential for the sake of national security.

However, these two articles do not apply to the press because the information must remain confidential for the sake of national security, not for the sake of the evidence required to achieve transitional justice, as Circular No. 24 claims. The established principle in criminalizing an act is that legal texts should not be interpreted broadly. Moreover, these two articles require bad faith and the specific criminal intent for the crime of disclosure. This means that the press is aware that this information jeopardizes national security and obtained it by entering or stealing from a restricted location.

Article 273 stipulates that anyone in possession of documents or information, such as those mentioned in Article 271, who discloses or divulges them without legitimate cause shall be punished with imprisonment. This description could apply if the person acted in bad faith, but the established legal principle, which constitutes a legal custom and a firmly rooted principle of law, is that the presumption is good faith on the part of the press, even investigative journalism.

This is because the role of the press is not merely to report the news; it also has a duty to sound the alarm about any suspected deviation, transgression, unusual phenomenon, or even to point out a major crime, with or without evidence, at all stages of the investigation. It is only the responsibility of the judicial authority to formally notify the journalist that publishing certain documents or information could affect the course of the investigation.

Only then is the journalist legally obligated to refrain from publishing the aforementioned information, solely for the benefit of the investigation. However, the documents pertaining to detainees are not related to a judicial investigation, but rather to determining the fate of millions of missing persons. They do not impede any future investigation into this matter because they do not reveal any perpetrator, accomplice, or instigator unknown to the Syrian people or the Ministry of Justice.

As for Chapter Four of the Cybercrime Law, enacted by the former regime to punish Syrians, none of its articles apply to obtaining and publishing information related to the fate of the missing.

Even the well-known charge of "undermining the prestige of the state" is inapplicable because Article 28 stipulates that the published news must be false.

The principle of press freedom constitutes an exception to the principle of not publishing confidential government and private information. This principle is enshrined in all European Union laws, including European legislation, particularly the 2016 European Directive, which explicitly states that press freedom is protected and that the press has the right to publish confidential information.

Dr. Omar Al-Youssef - Zaman Al-Wasl

Secret document reveals Assad's intelligence confusion after the exposure of Qutaifa cemetery

Zaman Al Wasl — Thu, 11 Dec 2025 18:18:00 +0300

Zaman al-Wasl published a top-secret security document dated September 28, 2020, revealing the regime's intelligence services were on high alert following the newspaper's investigation into the Qutaifa mass grave.

The document details the branch head's request for an immediate investigation into the newspaper's report, after observing the expansion of the cemetery, the construction of a 904-meter-long wall, the deployment of military guards, and the supervision of a Republican Guard officer. The memos documented the entry of trucks transporting bodies, foul odors, and the movement of excavators within the walled area.

The document also indicates that the remains of the detainees were transferred to the al-Dumayr desert after Zaman al-Wasl exposed the site. These documents confirm the regime's internal turmoil and its implicit acknowledgment of the accuracy of the newspaper's report on the mass grave.

Qutaifa cemetery: Document reveals alert by Assad intelligence alert after Zaman al-Wasl evidence on mass burials in 2020

Sat, 06 Dec 2025 11:48:00 +0300

Zaman al-Wasl obtained a security document issued by the Intelligence Directorate on September 28, 2020, marked "Top Secret - Immediate."

The document reveals the state of alert that gripped the regime's security apparatus following Zaman al-Wasl's investigation into the Quatifa cemetery, titled "

Quatifa Cemetery Again... Tight Security Guards to Exhume Graves." The newspaper had previously documented mass burials at the cemetery during the years of the war.

The document confirms that the Intelligence Directorate ordered the head of the Quatifa detachment to immediately investigate Zaman al-Wasl's report. This followed the newspaper's publication of satellite images showing the cemetery's expansion, the construction of a two-meter-high concrete wall, and its encirclement by heavy military guard. The investigation also noted a single entrance, the deployment of military vehicles, and a ban on approaching the area.

The accompanying data indicates that a Republican Guard officer named Ghassan Nassour supervises the detachment operating within the cemetery. The document also records the movement of covered vehicles and excavators working inside the wall, corroborating the newspaper's earlier report.

Security correspondence reveals that the wall was constructed under a contract issued by the Minister of Defense and executed by the Military Housing Establishment, spanning 904 meters. It also confirms the existence of rooms under construction within the cemetery, used by the Quatifa detachment, in addition to a prefabricated room of "unknown origin," according to the same security report.

One of the security memos documents the entry of four to six dump trucks transporting corpses emitting foul odors, under the supervision of a Republican Guard officer, in the last observation ten days prior to the report's preparation. It also indicates the presence of a yellow excavator operating within the site, radar signals, and a guard detachment belonging to the 220th Brigade of the Ministry of Defense.

It is worth noting that the "Japan Stands with Syria" association brought these documents to Zaman al-Wasl's attention, granting them access to the cemetery file before any other media outlet.

The editor-in-chief confirmed that the newspaper obtained photos and documents proving that the regime transferred the remains of martyrs from the Quatifa cemetery in the Damascus countryside to the al-Dumayr desert, following an urgent directive issued by military intelligence.

The documents show that the regime was forced to expedite the transfer of the remains after Zaman al-Wasl revealed the location of the cemetery and published a report about it in early 2019 and again in 2020, creating widespread confusion within its institutions during a period when it believed itself invincible.

It is worth noting that Reuters revealed details of the transfer of the remains in 2025 in its report titled "Transferring the Soil."

The leaked document reveals that the regime treated Zaman al-Wasl's report as a serious revelation that forced it to reassess its actions. This constitutes a practical acknowledgment of the newspaper's credibility and its ability to expose the mass graves despite the regime's attempts to conceal the evidence.

Under civil peace excuse, Civil society groups prevent publication of 10,000 torture photos

Zaman Al Wasl — Thu, 04 Dec 2025 16:52:50 +0300

A source told Zaman al-Wasl that he had seen and examined more than 10,000 photos of detainees' bodies, each marked with a number. These photos could potentially provide a final answer to more than 10,000 Syrian families, but the organizations that obtained them are refusing to publish them, fearing what they call "civil peace."

According to the source, the photos have been in the possession of at least two human rights organizations, funded by European sources, for six months. However, the two organizations have decided against publishing them altogether, arguing, "We don't want to affect civil peace; we fear shocking the families. These photos shouldn't be published because they will be used as legal evidence in trials in the coming years." They are completely ignoring the fact that the photos could support the families' cases against war criminals.

An official source confirmed the existence of these photos but stated that the Syrian Commission for Missing Persons is responsible for providing clarification.

According to Zaman al-Wasl's information, this pattern of preventing publication has been recurring since the liberation of Syria. Civil society organizations possess information that could reveal the fate of a quarter of a million Syrians if they decided to share it with the Syrian people, as it rightfully belongs to the Syrian people.

Hussein Al-Shishakli - Zaman Al-Wasl

Assad referred dozens of execution orders for defectors to Field Military Court: Documents

Zaman Al Wasl — Wed, 03 Dec 2025 14:17:00 +0300

On June 7, 2012, in a single day, Bashar al-Assad's office signed dozens of referral orders for defectors to the Field Court, where most were executed by firing squad.

Each referral order included more than 30 names—all in just one day. Imagine, then, the number of other orders that have yet to be carried out!

Zaman al-Wasl obtained dozens of these orders and is publishing some of them.

Read the original post at Zaman Al Wasl Arabic Here

Secret documents reveal Assad ordered field court to execute military defectors

Zaman Al Wasl — Tue, 25 Nov 2025 00:26:00 +0300

Zaman al-Wasl obtained hundreds of classified documents, dated 2012, showing that the then-President of the regime, Bashar al-Assad, in his capacity as Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces, approved the referral of hundreds of Syrian military defectors to the Field Military Court. Most of them were sentenced to death by firing squad, and the sentences were carried out.

These documents, which were presented to Assad, constitute direct evidence of his knowledge of and personal approval of these exceptional judicial procedures that affected hundreds of people at the beginning of the Syrian revolution.

Document Details

Zaman al-Wasl publishes one of the documents it obtained: a memorandum addressed to the President of the regime, which includes:

- Subject: "Memorandum from the Office of the Deputy Commander-in-Chief – Minister of Defense regarding the referral of all those whose names were included in the memorandum from the Head of the Organization and Administration Division to the Field Military Court." Summary: The document refers to a previous memorandum containing the names of "a group of defectors" and summarizes the opinion of military leaders requesting approval to refer these individuals to a field military court to adjudicate their crimes, "given the specific and general deterrent effect of the resulting rulings."

Signatories of the document (dated 2012)

The document shows the signatures of three high-ranking officers in the Syrian regime's military and security hierarchy at that time, confirming the chain of command and approval:

- The General, Head of the Organization and Administration Division.

- The General, Chief of the General Staff of the Army and Armed Forces and Minister of Defense.

- General Daoud Rajha, Deputy Commander-in-Chief of the Army and Minister of Defense.

- Decision of the President and Commander-in-Chief of the Army and Armed Forces (Bashar al-Assad).

By Editor-in-Chief

Secret Documents Reveal: Heart Attack as Standard Cause of Death for Detainees in pro-Assad Militia Prisons

Zaman Al Wasl — Sun, 23 Nov 2025 14:00:00 +0300

A set of official documents classified as "Top Secret," which were first published in 2015, revealed a uniform and suspicious pattern in the deaths of dozens of detainees inside detention centers run by the General Secretariat of National Defense, a pro-Bashar al-Assad militia in Syria.

The documents, which consist of official correspondence from the Information Office of the General Secretariat of National Defense to the Military Justice Department in 2015, all share a similar conclusion regarding the fate of the detainees: "natural death due to myocardial infarction" (heart attack). This standardized diagnosis, applied to every case, contradicts numerous international human rights reports confirming that many detainees died as a result of systematic torture or the dire conditions in Syrian regime prisons.

The correspondence included the names of several detainees who died in custody, recording corpse numbers and dates of death. In one instance, the authorities responded by stating, "There is no communication with any of the families of the mentioned detainees for handover," pointing starkly to a policy of enforced disappearance.

These documents add a new layer of direct evidence that could be utilized by international justice mechanisms, such as the International Criminal Court, to bolster efforts for accountability and future prosecution of those responsible for war crimes and crimes against humanity committed within the Syrian regime's prison system.

Detainee Memos: Qutaiba Mubarak

Wed, 12 Nov 2025 09:55:00 +0300

Twelve years ago, specifically on November 11th, young Qutaiba Mubarak was destined for an unknown fate when he was arrested at the Quneitra Immigration and Passports Center. This marked the beginning of a nine-month ordeal in Syrian regime prisons, during which he suffered torture and was deprived of his most basic human rights.

On the morning of that fateful day, Mubarak, 32, went to the Immigration and Passports Center in Quneitra to complete some routine paperwork. Little did he know that this visit would be the start of one of the most difficult chapters of his life.

Qutaiba was immediately transferred to the Palestine Branch, one of the most notorious Syrian security branches known for torture and abuses. He spent nine months in solitary confinement, deprived of contact with his family and subjected to the most horrific forms of physical and psychological torture.

Qutaiba's family never stopped trying to secure his release. They went from one security and intelligence branch to another, paying exorbitant sums of money in a desperate attempt to save their son from an unknown fate.

After nine months of suffering, the family finally managed to pay the required ransom, and Qutaiba was released, bearing the scars of torture on his body and psychological wounds that still haunt him to this day.

Syrian security arrets General as document revealed key role in Sednaya prison atrocities

Wed, 22 Oct 2025 21:08:00 +0300

The Counter-Terrorism Branch in Damascus Governorate carried out a meticulous operation, following close field monitoring and continuous surveillance, which resulted in the arrest of Major General Akram Salloum al-Abdullah, who held several positions, most notably as Commander of the Military Police between 2014 and 2015, during the rule of the former regime.

Al-Abdullah's arrest comes after a document published by Zaman al-Wasl, found in Syria's notorious Sednaya Military Prison, revealed an official request from him, addressed to the highest military levels, requesting the preparation of a room to "preserve corpses" that could accommodate at least 50 bodies.

The shocking justification for this request, as stated in the document, dated April 2014, was the need to "preserve the bodies of detainees who die in prison," citing logistical difficulties in transporting the bodies to hospital morgues.

The document, presented in the form of a "presentation memorandum," was issued by Major General Akram Salloum al-Abdullah, a paratrooper pilot, to the Chief of Staff of the Army and Armed Forces, General Ali Abdullah Ayoub, who signed it with approval.

The criminal is implicated in committing serious violations against detainees in Sednaya Prison. Initial investigations have shown that he was directly responsible for carrying out the liquidation of detainees inside Sednaya Military Prison (the First Military Prison) during his tenure as Commander of the Military Police.

The Major General was referred to the competent authorities for further investigation, pending his referral to the competent judiciary to take the necessary legal action against him.

Zaman al-Wasl

Detainees' Archive: Document of a Mass Execution in Tadmur Prison in 1982

Zaman Al Wasl — Tue, 21 Oct 2025 09:22:00 +0300

An official document issued by the Syrian Army Command in 1982 revealed an order to carry out a mass execution by firing squad and hanging for 21military personnel and civilians held in Tadmur (Palmyra) prison, after they were convicted of "membership in the armed wing of the Muslim Brotherhood."

This military order, numbered 11 and dated January 19, 1982, from the Organization and Administration Division, was issued in implementation of a decision by the Field Court and approved by the Deputy Commander-in-Chief of the Army and Armed Forces and Minister of Defense, Mustafa Tlass.

Details of those convicted:

The list of those convicted included the names of 21:

- Two military personnel: from the Defense Factories Establishment.

- 19 civilians: The document included a table listing the names of 19 civilians, some of whom were born in Aleppo, Hama, Harem, and Azaz.

The execution procedures documented in the order:

The order stipulated that the execution would take place on January 22, 1982, and would be carried out in strict secrecy:

- Time and Place: The sentence for military personnel would be carried out at 12 noon at the Palmyra firing range, while for civilians, it would be carried out at 5 a.m. in the Palmyra Military Prison courtyard.

- Supervision: Major General Tawfiq al-Khatib, Commander of the Central Region, was assigned to oversee the execution as chairman of the supervisory committee.

- Execution Ceremony: The sentence would be read aloud to the convicts before execution, with the exception of those brought to the execution square. Each convict would then be blindfolded and tied to a pole for the execution to begin.

- Execution Squad: A special squad of military police would be formed. The shooters would be armed with Russian rifles and loaded with real bullets, with one blank bullet allocated to one of the rifles to prevent the executioner from identifying himself as the real killer.

- The Salvation Bullet: The execution officer, armed with a pistol, was tasked with firing the "salvation bullet" at the convict after the other officers opened fire.

The bodies were never returned to their families and were buried in a secret location in the Palmyra desert.

Detainees: Zaman al-Wasl publishes second batch of Al-Mujtahid Hospital's secret records

Sun, 19 Oct 2025 10:43:00 +0300

Zaman al-Wasl publishes the second batch of names of thousands of martyrs handed over to the burial office by al-Mujtahid (Damascus) Hospital between 2011 and 2013, after receiving most of them from the State Security Service in Damascus.

These documents are being published for the first time, as al-Mujtahid's files have not been released to date.

Each batch contains 24 pages, including more than 350 victims as part of the "I am the Detainee" initiative.

Note: al-Mujtahid previously received deaths from traffic accidents and some criminal cases, but these bodies were handed over to their families, as explained.

The second batch Here

Assad-era conspiracy to hide thousands of dead turned Syria’s remote desert into a mass grave

Sat, 18 Oct 2025 23:08:00 +0300

There was no mistaking the reek of death that rose along the Syrian desert highway four nights a week for nearly two years. It was the smell of thousands of bodies being trucked from one mass grave to another, secret location.

Drivers were forbidden to leave their cabs. Mechanics and bulldozer operators were sworn to silence and knew they’d pay with their lives for speaking out. Orders for “Operation Move Earth” were verbal only. The transfer was orchestrated by one Syrian colonel, who would ultimately spend nearly a decade burying Syrian President Bashar al-Assad’s dead.

The order for the transfer came from the presidential palace. The colonel, known as Assad’s “master of cleansing,” directed the operation from 2019 to 2021.

The first grave, in the Damascus-area town of Qutayfah, contained trenches filled with the remains of people who died in prison, under interrogation or during battle. That mass grave’s existence had been exposed by human rights activists during the civil war and was long considered one of Syria’s largest.

But a Reuters investigation has found that the Assad government secretly excavated the Qutayfah site and trucked its thousands of bodies to a new site on a military installation more than an hour away, in the Dhumair desert.

In an exclusive report published Tuesday, Reuters revealed the clandestine reburial scheme and the existence of the second mass grave. Reuters can now expose, in forensic detail, how those responsible carried out the conspiracy and kept it a secret for six years.

Reuters spoke to 13 people with direct knowledge of the two-year effort to move the bodies and analyzed more than 500 satellite images of both mass graves taken over more than a decade that showed not just the Qutayfah grave’s creation but also how, as its burial trenches were re-opened and excavated, the secret new site expanded until it covered a vast stretch of desert.

Reuters used aerial drone photography to further corroborate the transfer of bodies. Under the guidance of forensic geologists, the news agency also took thousands of drone and ground photos of the two sites to create high-resolution composite images. At Dhumair, the drone flights showed the disturbed soil around the burial trenches was darker and redder than nearby undisturbed areas – the kind of change that would be expected if Qutayfah’s subsoil were added to the soil at Dhumair, according to Lorna Dawson and Benjamin Rocke, the geologists who advised Reuters.

Syria is dotted with mass graves, but the secret site that Reuters discovered is among the largest known. With at least 34 trenches totalling 2 kilometers long, the grave near the desert town of Dhumair is among the most extensive created during the country’s civil war. Witness accounts and the dimensions of the new site suggest that tens of thousands of people could be buried there.

To reduce the chance that intruders may tamper with the site before it can be protected, Reuters is not revealing its location.

How the Mass Grave Sites Compare

At Qutayfah, Reuters found 16 burial trenches ranging in length from roughly 15 meters to 160 meters. At Dhumair, there were at least 34 trenches ranging in length from about 20 meters to 125 meters.

The trenches at Qutayfah were wider and deeper, but the Dhumair site had a greater number of trenches overall.

After the initial story by Reuters, the government’s new National Commission for Missing Persons said it had asked the Interior Ministry to seal and protect the Dhumair site. The commission told Reuters the haphazard transfer of bodies to Dhumair would make the process of identifying victims more difficult.

“Each family of a missing person faces particular suffering intertwined with scientific complexities that could turn the identification process into a lengthy and costly technical project,” the commission said.

For four nights nearly every week, six to eight trucks filled with dirt, human remains and maggots traveled to the Dhumair desert site, according to the witnesses involved in the operation. The stench clung to the clothes and hair of everyone involved, according to descriptions from witnesses, including two truckers, three mechanics, a bulldozer operator and a former officer from Assad’s elite Republican Guard who was involved from the earliest days of the transfer.

The idea to move thousands of bodies came into being in late 2018, when Assad was verging on victory in Syria’s civil war, said the former Republican Guard officer. The dictator was hoping to regain international recognition after being sidelined by years of sanctions and allegations of brutality, the officer said. At the time, Assad had already been accused of detaining Syrians by the thousands. But no independent Syrian groups or international organizations had access to the prisons or the mass graves.

At a 2018 meeting with Russian intelligence, Assad was assured that allies were actively working to end his isolation, the officer said. The Russians advised the dictator to hide evidence of widespread human rights violations. “Most notably arrests, mass graves, and chemical attacks,” he said.

Two truckers and the officer told Reuters they were told the point of the transfer was to clear out the Qutayfah mass grave and hide evidence of mass killings.

Qutayfah’s first trench appeared on satellite imagery in 2012. A Syrian human rights activist exposed Qutayfah by releasing photos to local media in 2014, revealing the existence of the grave and its general location on the outskirts of Damascus, and accused Assad of using the site to conceal the sheer volume of people killed under his leadership. Its precise location came to light a few years later, in court testimony and other media reports. By the time Assad fell, however, all 16 trenches documented by Reuters had been emptied.

Russia’s foreign intelligence service declined to comment, and a legal advisor for Assad did not respond to requests for comment on Reuters’ findings.

More than 160,000 people disappeared into the deposed dictator’s vast security apparatus and are believed to be buried in the dozens of mass graves he created, according to Syrian rights groups. The government has estimated the missing since the Assad family’s rule began in 1970 at up to 300,000. Organized excavation and DNA analysis could help trace what happened to them, easing one of Syria’s most painful faultlines.

But with few resources in Syria, even well-known mass graves are largely unprotected and unexcavated. And the country’s new leaders, who overthrew Assad in December, have released no documentation for any of them, despite repeated calls from the families of the missing.

The National Commission for Missing People said that’s because many records have disappeared or been destroyed, and the gaps in data are immense even for well-known sites like Qutayfah. There are plans to create a DNA bank and a centralized digital platform for families of the missing, but not enough specialists in forensic medicine and DNA testing, they said.

Reuters reviewed court testimony and dozens of signed documents showing the chain of command from prison deathbeds to morgues. Many of those documents bore the official stamp of the same colonel who oversaw the two mass burial sites: Col. Mazen Ismandar.

All those interviewed who were involved in the transfer of bodies recalled nights working for Ismandar.

Ahmed Ghazal, a mechanic, described nighttime repairs throughout that period in which soldiers ordered him to clear out his garage so the trucks could be fixed quickly and out of sight. Ghazal told Reuters he didn’t believe their initial explanation, that the smell of rot came from chemicals and expired medicine.

He saw the bodies for the first time when he jumped inside the truck bed during a repair job. Then, after a decaying human hand fell on one of his apprentices, Ghazal said curiosity got the better of him and he approached one of the military drivers to ask where the bodies were from. That driver told him they were from Qutayfah, and that the orders were to move them before Syria could open itself to international scrutiny.

Ghazal, who led Reuters to the Dhumair site, described the events he’d witnessed there in a methodical, deep voice. But he said he never spoke out at the time.

To talk, he said, “means death. Just by talking, what happened to the people who are buried here might happen to you.”

Reuters spoke to the driver as well, who recalled his conversation with Ghazal and said Col. Ismandar warned they’d pay if anyone spoke of what they’d seen.

Contacted through intermediaries, Ismandar declined to comment on Reuters’ findings.

“If I’d been able to act freely, I wouldn’t have taken this job. I am a servant to the orders, a slave to the orders,” the driver said. “I was overwhelmed with feelings of fear, the terrible smell and a sense of guilt.”

When he would return home at sunrise, he said, he doused himself with cologne.

“Master of cleansing”

As an opposition movement against Assad’s rule deteriorated into civil war in 2012, the town of Qutayfah, on the outskirts of Damascus, was one of the few places firmly under government control. So it was to a military site there that people brought the bodies they found during the early days of fighting and Assad’s furious efforts to contain the uprising, said Anwar Haj Khalil, the former head of the city council.

By 2013, truckloads of bodies were arriving from hospitals, detention centers and battlefields. There were so many corpses that two government-owned food distributors – meatpackers and another company that distributed fruit and vegetables – redirected their refrigerated trucks to haul the dead to Qutayfah, according to Haj Khalil and a former brigadier general in the Syrian Army’s 3rd Division, which coordinated burial logistics. The former brigadier general, like many involved in the conspiracy, requested anonymity to describe how it worked.

But no one wanted the responsibility of burying the bodies, said Haj Khalil, who still lives in the area.

They needed a person to oversee the operations and the site. Ismandar began playing that role as early as 2012, according to multiple witnesses and court testimony. He was introduced to the 3rd Division crew as the “master of cleansing operations,” according to the division’s officer.

Ismandar’s actual title, according to documents from 2018 bearing his stamp and reviewed by Reuters, was budget manager for the Syrian military’s Medical Services. That unit was one of the most powerful government bodies, with control over medical care for soldiers and anyone taken to military hospitals, including thousands of prisoners whose deaths were recorded there.

Ismandar and a 3rd Division commander jointly settled upon a communal plot controlled by the military in Qutayfah, Haj Khalil and the brigadier general said.

Initially, bodies came in a few dozen at a time from two nearby hospitals. They had shrouds inked with names, Haj Khalil said. But within a few months, he said, he grew wearily used to calls from Ismandar after midnight to dispose of bodies from the Tishreen Military Hospital outside Damascus. Another officer would call Haj Khalil to dispose of the bodies from the notorious Sednaya prison.

“Ismandar would tell me, ‘The refrigerator trucks are headed your way. Tell the bulldozer to meet us at the site in a half-hour,’” Haj Khalil said.

Initially, all the bodies from Tishreen and Sednaya were blindfolded, their hands bound with plastic strips, according to a bulldozer operator who worked at Qutayfah beginning in 2014. He said those from Tishreen first arrived in body bags, then in nylon bags, and then in no bags at all. Nearly all were naked, said the operator, who recalled his phone ringing at 2 a.m. with orders to start digging.

The early trenches dug by the army were too shallow, and “were partly the reason I was summoned,” the bulldozer operator said. “Given the nature of the soil, which is mixed with gravel and small stones, the odor quickly spread.” Locals complained about the smell and the dogs who were drawn to it, he said.

He said he dug each trench roughly 4 meters deep and wide, and between 75 and 90 meters long. His account corresponds to satellite imagery analyzed by Reuters: The images from 2013 when trench digging began in earnest appear to show shallow trenches, followed by longer and deeper gashes in the earth in 2014.

“I couldn’t sleep or eat for the first two weeks because of the horror of what I saw,” the bulldozer operator told Reuters. “But after that, something inside me snapped and I got used to it.”

All the while, Ismandar maintained a series of logbooks detailing the number of bodies arriving and the security branch that sent them, according to sworn testimony from a gravedigger named Mohammed Afif Naifa in German and U.S. cases involving allegations of torture against the Assad government. Naifa told a German court that he worked with Ismandar from 2011 to 2017 and coordinated the burials of political prisoners. Naifa, whose testimony referred to Qutayfah but didn’t touch upon Dhumair, declined to speak with Reuters.

He testified that the numbers in the logbooks undercounted the true number of bodies he helped bury. The victims, he said, included babies and young children.

“This system of undercounting is how the regime disappeared and buried so many more people than were recorded,” Naifa testified in 2024 in a U.S. civil suit that was brought by a torture victim against the Assad government.

Ismandar’s name appeared 73 times among thousands of documents from 2018 and 2019 Reuters found and photographed during a visit to a military police forensics office that was abandoned in December as the forces of Ahmed al-Sharaa, now Syria’s president, swept to power in Damascus. An inked stamp bearing Ismandar’s name appeared on documents from 2018 and 2019 that track how prisoners were taken first to Tishreen Military Hospital and then – after death – to the Harsta Military Hospital to be stored. The documents don’t mention mass graves.

From at least 2013 through 2018, however, 16 burial trenches were dug at Qutayfah with a total length of more than 1.2 kilometers, the Reuters analysis of satellite imagery and aerial drone photography found.

Local roads were closed when the trucks rumbled into the gravesite. In 2014, one of the trucks broke down on the highway and everyone in the convoy en route to Qutayfah stopped, according to the 3rd Division officer, who accompanied the group. Naifa gave a matching account of the incident.

The 3rd Division officer said he took a furious call from Ismandar’s commanding officer, Maj. Gen. Ammar Suleiman: “Orders from Mr. President: Block the international road until help comes.”

Suleiman was one of Syria’s top generals and part of Assad’s trusted inner circle. He led the military Medical Services and was Ismandar’s direct commander. His involvement was also confirmed in Naifa’s testimony and by a commander of the National Defense, a paramilitary that reported directly to Assad and was involved in Syria’s most sensitive security operations.

Suleiman did not respond to a message seeking comment.

Reuters didn’t find any documentation containing direct orders from Assad about mass graves in general or Operation Move Earth. But the Republican Guard officer and the National Defense commander said it was inconceivable that Assad hadn’t ordered it.

“I challenge you to find anything issued in Bashar al-Assad's name,” said the National Defense commander. “He knew that reckoning would come one day, and he wanted to keep his hands clean.”

Based on the pace of deliveries over those years, Haj Khalil, the former council chief, estimated Qutayfah held 60,000 to 80,000 dead by the end of 2018. That’s when the trench digging stopped, according to the Reuters satellite imagery analysis.

By then, with the help of Russia and Iran, Assad was widely seen as the victor in the civil war. Still, he had lost control of much of northern Syria to al-Sharaa’s Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, or HTS, and to Kurdish forces, who each carved out autonomous regions.

One evening late in 2018, Assad summoned four military and intelligence chiefs to the presidential palace to discuss what to do about the mass graves, especially the Qutayfah site, said the Republican Guard officer. The officer worked in the palace at the time and said he was among a handful of people to see the meeting minutes.

The military intelligence chief, Kamal Hassan, came up with the idea of excavating the entire Qutayfah mass grave and moving the contents somewhere more remote, the officer said.

“The idea seemed crazy to most who heard it, but it received a green light from Assad,” he said. The main criterion for a new site was that it be under military control, he said.

Military intelligence chief Hassan ordered weekly reports to be sent to the presidential palace, the officer said. Reuters could not reach Hassan, who is not believed to be in Syria, for comment.

In November 2018, work started on a concrete wall around Qutayfah, according to the officer, former council head Haj Khalil and a Reuters analysis of satellite imagery. A February 2019 satellite image shows the wall surrounding the entire mass grave. At 3 meters high, it blocked any view of the site from ground level.

More than an hour away in the Syrian desert, in early February 2019, the first of at least 34 trenches appeared. A new operation had begun on a windswept military base near the town of Dhumair protected by a series of berms and fences and ringed by mountains on all sides.

Operation Move Earth

Written orders said the mission was to transport dirt and sand to a construction site, according to the Republican Guard officer and Haj Khalil. Clean-shaven with graying hair, Ismandar gathered the drivers a few minutes before they started work on their first day. He explained that it was actually bodies that needed moving because the mass grave location at Qutayfah had been exposed, said the military driver.

It was called Operation Move Earth, according to the Republican Guard officer and the National Defense officer.

“The instructions on the first day were: No one carries or uses phones. No one leaves the trucks during loading or offloading of the bodies, on pain of death,” said one of the military drivers. “No one would dare violate the orders.”

The truckers generally left Qutayfah around sundown and were forbidden to exit their cabs during loading, the driver said. He could see Ismandar in the rearview mirror, gesturing to him where to park. His truck rocked each time the bulldozer emptied itself, five or six times.

Mass Grave Transfer

Excavation at Qutayfah and the filling of trenches at the Dhumair site happened in tandem. The first trench appeared at Dhumair in February 2019. Qutayfah’s 1,200 meters of trenches were opened and emptied of bodies beginning in March 2019. Work stopped at both places in April 2021. By the end of the transfer operation, Dhumair’s trenches totaled about 2,000 meters in length.

“Some were merely decomposed skulls and bones, while others were still fresh,” said the Republican Guard officer, who oversaw the work directly. “There were also many maggots. Hundreds, if not thousands, of maggots fell with each dumping from the bulldozer's bucket into the truck.”

Then, on Ismandar’s orders, the vehicles pulled into a tight line and headed toward Dhumair, six to eight dull orange Mercedes dump trucks trailing the colonel’s white van.

An overwhelming stench traveled with the convoy. Drivers and mechanics invariably began their descriptions of those late nights with the smell that filled the air, four days a week, from February 2019 until April 2021, excluding holidays, snow days and a Covid confinement that in Syria lasted about four months.

After years of these journeys, the trucks’ payload was an open secret for people living near both sites, according to a resident who still recalled the odor. “Everyone saw us,” said one of the drivers.

Dhumair’s Trenches Over Time

This satellite image from 2019 shows trenches under construction at the Dhumair site. The trenches grew longer in 2020, according to a Reuters analysis of later imagery, and Operation Move Earth drew to a close in 2021.

Without excavation, a close estimate of how many bodies are buried at Dhumair is impossible. But a convoy of six to eight trucks making four trips a week means a conservative estimate of about 2,600 trips including the time off. Based on that and the size of the trucks, it is reasonable to believe tens of thousands of people could be buried at Dhumair, experts told Reuters.

By the time Operation Move Earth was done, each one of Qutayfah’s 16 trenches documented by Reuters had been opened, satellite imagery showed. In all, Dhumair contains 2 kilometers of trenches, according to Reuters calculations. The drivers and one mechanic said each was about 2 meters wide and 3 meters deep.

Reuters reporters who visited the site this year saw human bones scattered on the surface, including what experts identified as a fragment of a human skull.

Ghazal, the mechanic, said he encountered the convoy frequently. The trucks dated to the mid-1980s and were prone to malfunctions.

Their periodic appearances at his garage gave him a chance to discern two types of bodies headed for Dhumair. Some were decomposed and covered in soil. Others appeared to be freshly dead, including young men and women. His two cousins, who also worked at the garage, also told Reuters they saw recently deceased bodies. Reuters could not determine where the newly dead bodies came from.

Ghazal led a Reuters team to the site, which he could identify from having been summoned there for an urgent repair on a truck that wouldn’t budge.

“Everywhere you look,” he said, pointing at the empty desert, “there are people buried beneath the earth.”

Ammar Al Selmo, a board member for the White Helmets organization that helps find and excavate mass graves, was the first to alert Reuters to a possible mass grave in Dhumair. He said Qutayfah locals had told the White Helmets the mass grave there was empty and a witness in Dhumair reported the convoys with bodies, but Al Selmo said the organization is short on staff and resources and didn’t verify either claim. After learning of Reuters’ findings, he said the White Helmets plan an initial visit in coming days.

A Reuters analysis of hundreds of satellite images taken over years indicated a color shift in the disturbed earth at the Dhumair site. But even the most sophisticated commercial images lack the resolution needed for a close examination of the soil.

So Reuters set out to take thousands of drone photos with the intention of creating higher-resolution composite images of Qutayfah and Dhumair, using specialized photogrammetry software.

The composites showed that bulldozers repeatedly passed over the trenches to tamp down the soil. They also supported Reuters’ key finding that bodies had been transferred from Qutayfah to Dhumair.

The analysis of the drone images found color changes around the Dhumair burial trenches that suggest subsoil characteristic of that found at Qutayfah may have been mixed in with the soil at Dhumair. That’s what could be expected if the soil dug up with human remains at Qutayfah was then added to the soil at Dhumair, according to Dawson, a pioneer in forensic soil science at The James Hutton Institute in Aberdeen, Scotland, and Rocke, who specializes in finding burial sites using remote imagery.

Dhumair’s final trench was filled in during the first week of April 2021, according to the satellite imagery analysis. By the end of that year, Qutayfah’s rubble had been flattened, in an attempt to obliterate any signs of the now-empty mass grave. In imagery for both sites, the earth still carries the scars of attempts to cover up the burials.

The intelligence chief who had first come up with the idea of moving the bodies to Dhumair received one of the last weekly reports about the operation in late 2021 and turned to the Republican Guard officer. “Syria is victorious and opening up to the world again” were his words, the officer recalled. “We want guests to come and find the country clean.”

Ismandar, like Assad and many others in the government, fled Syria after the dictator fell, according to two former military officers familiar with his movements.

With Assad gone, Ghazal said the mass graves were the first thing he thought of as he watched footage of thousands of Syrians streaming into Sednaya prison in vain hope of finding missing loved ones. Some of the burial sites were already known, including Qutayfah.

In December 2024, several local and international media outlets visited the newly accessible site, including Reuters. So did an association for missing Syrians, which noted that Qutayfah had been bulldozed sometime between 2018 and 2021.

No one reported that the trenches were empty.

Ghazal, who still lives and works in the area, said no one ever came to search the site in the Dhumair desert that haunts him still.

So many Syrians, he said, were looking in the wrong place.

Zaman Al-Wasl publishes secret records of Al-Mujtahid Hospital and delivery of detainees' bodies to burial office

Fri, 17 Oct 2025 10:21:00 +0300

Zaman al-Wasl Arabic publishes the names of thousands of detainees killed in the State Security torture chambers, who were handed over to the governorate's burial office by al-Mujtahid Hospital (Damascus) between 2011 and 2013.

These documents are being published for the first time, as the files from al-Mujtahid Hospital have not been released to date.

Zaman al-Wasl will publish the names in batches, each containing 24 pages, including more than 350 martyrs, as part of the "I Am the Detainee" initiative.

Note: Al-Mujtahid Hospital previously received deaths from traffic accidents and some criminal cases, but these bodies were then handed over to their families.

Read the original post Here

Black Record of Third Division: Vast swathes of Mass Graves

Zaman Al Wasl — Wed, 15 Oct 2025 13:40:22 +0300

The Third Division of the defunct Syrian regime army was notorious for its brutality, responsible for launching surface-to-surface missiles on areas such as Eastern Ghouta suburbs, its operations in the Damascus countryside, and its repressive checkpoint practices in Qalamoun region .

A military source revealed the existence of a secret mass grave within the division's compound, spanning an area of approximately fifty dunams, containing the remains of thousands of "disappeared" civilians and activists.

These victims died under torture in the division's prisons and other prisons, or were killed at the division's checkpoints and during raids.

Details of the mass grave:

- This is not a single grave, but rather several mass graves, located approximately 1,200 meters north of the division's headquarters. These graves are under heavy guard, and burials usually take place at night.

- Sources of corpses: These include Sednaya Prison (in coordination with Major General Adnan Ismail), the Third Division Prison (where hundreds were killed under torture, and there are accounts of liquidations by Firas al-Jaz'a), Division checkpoints (immediate field executions), martyrs from raids and confrontations (such as the Rankous and Asal al-Ward massacres), and other security branches (such as the al-Qatifah Security and Political Security detachments in Damascus).

- Dimensions of the cemetery and burials: The cemetery is 270 meters long and 158 meters wide (50 dunams). Longitudinal and transverse trenches were dug (160 meters long and 120 meters wide for the trenches), and bodies were dumped en masse into them at night and then filled in with bulldozers ("creeders"). The number buried is estimated to be in the thousands.

The main perpetrators of the crimes and the cemetery:

Among the officers, the most prominent are:

- Major General Adnan Jamil Ismail: The division's security officer in 2011, primarily responsible for hundreds of executions. He later became the division's commander (2015-present) and continued his crimes.

- Colonel Firas al-Jaz'a: Director of the division commander's office and commander of the Qalamoun Shield Forces. He was accused of carrying out hundreds of field executions and gloating over the deaths of detainees.

Major General Louay Maala: Former division commander (responsible for executions between 2013 and 2015).

- Major General Salim Rashid Barakat: Responsible for executions until September 2013.

- Brigadier General Muhammad Makhlouf: The division's security officer who succeeded Adnan Ismail, described as even more criminal.

Third Division Cemetery: Thousands of missing persons secretly buried

Zaman Al Wasl — Wed, 15 Oct 2025 05:32:00 +0300

The Third Division, one of the former Syrian regime's military sectors, gained a reputation for brutality early on, being responsible for launching surface-to-surface missiles at various areas of the country, particularly Eastern Ghouta suburbs. This was in addition to its brutal military operations in the Damascus countryside and its repressive checkpoint practices in the Qalamoun region, which have targeted numerous activists and civilians.

A specialized military source revealed to Zaman al-Wasl a new addition to the division's dark record: a mass grave on the division's grounds, extending over an area of fifty dunams, containing the remains of hundreds of civilians and activists who died under torture in the division's prisons and other prisons, or who were victims of the division's checkpoints and raids.

The source says: Units of the Third Division were deployed in the Qalamoun region, and their operational areas extended across vast areas of Qalamoun's villages, mountains, plains, farms, and roads. These units arrested hundreds of local residents, subjecting them to unparalleled brutality and torture, reflecting the inherent hatred inherent in the division's operational methodology, which has been known for its sectarianism and criminality since the 1980s, when it practiced the same role against civilians and unarmed individuals.

Many detainees were killed under torture, while others were executed in the field, under the direct supervision of the division's security officer in 2011, Brigadier General Adnan Jamil Suleiman (promoted to the rank of major general), who soon became commander of the division in 2015 and remains so. His accomplice in these crimes was Lieutenant Colonel Firas al-Jaz'a, who was assigned command of the Qalamoun Shield Forces, which were formed as a parallel force to Assad's sectarian army in the region. This mission was then assumed by the division's new security officer, Brigadier General Muhammad Makhlouf, who was even more criminal than his predecessors.

Mass Graves Near the Third Division Command:

This is not a single cemetery, but rather several mass graves in the same location, where martyrs who died at the hands of the Assad regime's executioners were buried. The cemetery is located approximately 1,200 meters north of the division command, on an empty plot of land under the division's control. The area remains under heavy guard, preventing anyone from approaching the site. Burials used to take place at night.

The cemetery contains the remains of martyrs who died in several locations, most notably:

- Sednaya Prison: This is the primary source, as the bodies of martyrs who died under torture in this prison are transported to this cemetery after direct coordination with the criminal Adnan Ismail, who now holds the rank of major general.

- Third Division Prison: Where hundreds of martyrs died under torture, most of them residents of the area, who were arrested at the division's checkpoints throughout the Qalamoun region. There is evidence confirming that the criminal Firas al-Jaz'a executed them inside the prison.

- Division checkpoints: These checkpoints carried out field executions of civilians or activists. Sometimes, the mere family name of a passerby was enough to prompt immediate execution, without deterrence or restraint.

- Martyrs from raids and confrontations: A large number of civilians were killed during the Division's raids on villages and towns, the most horrific of which were the Rankous and Asal al-Ward massacres.

- Other sources: The bodies of martyrs who died under torture in security branches, such as the al-Qutayfah security detachments and the Political Security detachments in Damascus, were also transferred to this cemetery.

The cemetery expanded over time:

It is 270 meters long and 158 meters wide, with an area estimated at approximately fifty dunams. Longitudinal and transverse trenches were dug, and the bodies were placed inside under cover of darkness. Then, bulldozers filled them in.

The number of people buried in these graves is estimated to be in the thousands, with each trench measuring 160 meters wide and 120 meters long. Bodies are dumped in these graves en masse...

The following images speak for themselves. They are arranged chronologically, starting with the oldest and ending with 2016.

Those responsible for this cemetery:

The leadership of the Third Division is the sinful hand that has shed the blood of Syrians, civilians and activists, men, women, and children. However, the bloodshed extends to all those who participated in, supported, or remained silent about the dirty operations of the Assad regime's forces, which led to the killing and secret burial of thousands of Syrians in this mass grave. Meanwhile, the families of the disappeared victims wait, and their wait may be long before they discover that their children have been reduced to ashes under the soil of this cemetery.

The Criminals:

- Major General Adnan Jamil Ismail: He served as the division's security officer at the start of the revolution in 2011. He was primarily responsible for carrying out hundreds of executions inside the division's prisons. He continued his criminal activities after being appointed commander of the Third Division, succeeding Major General Louay Maala, who was transferred to command the Third Corps.

- Major General Louay Maala: The former division commander was responsible for executions between 2013 and 2015.

- Major General Salim Rashid Barakat: Responsible for executions until September 2013.

- Brigadier General Muhammad Makhlouf: The division's security officer, he continued the criminal career of his predecessor, Adnan Ismail.

- Lieutenant Colonel Firas al-Jaz'a: Director of the division commander's office and commander of the Qalamoun Shield Forces. He personally carried out hundreds of field executions and gloated over the deaths of detainees.

In addition, many officers and non-commissioned officers, executioners, and jailers, were tortured, abused, killed, liquidated, and buried.

Assad regime secretly moved mass grave to desert Dhumair town to cover up killings: Reuters investigation

Reuters — Wed, 15 Oct 2025 00:47:00 +0300

The Assad regime ran a clandestine two-year operation to exhume and secretly relocate thousands of bodies from one of Syria’s largest mass graves to a remote desert site in an attempt to conceal evidence of war crimes, a Reuters investigation has revealed.

The covert campaign, known internally as Operation Move Earth, involved trucking human remains from the Qutayfah mass grave near Damascus to an enormous new burial site outside the desert town of Dhumair between 2019 and 2021, according to 13 people with direct knowledge of the effort. Witnesses included military personnel, drivers and mechanics who participated in the transfers.

Reuters reviewed official documents, satellite imagery and eyewitness accounts that detail how six to eight trucks loaded with dirt and human remains made near-nightly trips for more than two years, creating what is believed to be one of the most extensive mass graves of the Syrian civil war. The new site, containing at least 34 trenches stretching nearly 2 kilometers, may hold tens of thousands of bodies.

Sources said the operation was ordered by Bashar Assad’s military in a bid to “erase evidence” of mass killings at Qutayfah and improve the regime’s image as it sought international rehabilitation after years of isolation. “The goal was to clear out Qutayfah and hide the crimes,” said a former officer from Assad’s elite Republican Guard.

Assad’s forces began using Qutayfah as a burial ground in 2012, with victims reportedly including soldiers and detainees who died in prisons and military hospitals. The site’s existence was first revealed in 2014 when a Syrian rights activist released photos showing mass burials near Damascus. By the time the regime fell in December 2024, all 16 trenches at Qutayfah had been emptied.

More than 160,000 people are still missing after disappearing into Assad’s security apparatus, according to Syrian rights groups. Experts say identifying the victims will require systematic excavation and DNA analysis — an enormous challenge in a country still reeling from war.

Mohammed Reda Jehlki, head of the new government’s National Commission for Missing People, acknowledged the vast scale of the task. He said plans were underway to create a DNA bank and digital database for families of the disappeared, but the lack of forensic resources remains a major obstacle.

“There is a bleeding wound as long as mothers wait to find the graves of their sons, wives wait for their husbands, and children for their fathers,” Jehlki told the semi-official al-Watan newspaper in August.

Mohamed Al Abdallah, director of the Syria Justice and Accountability Center, called the mass transfer a “disaster for grieving families,” saying the process will make returning remains to relatives “extremely complicated.” He welcomed the commission’s creation but warned it “still lacks the experts and resources needed to deliver justice.”

Drivers and soldiers involved in Operation Move Earth said disobeying orders was unthinkable. “No one would say no,” one truck driver recalled. “You yourself might end up in the holes.”

Syria and Lebanon Close to Judicial Agreement on 2,300 Prisoners in Lebanon – Officials

Tue, 14 Oct 2025 13:28:00 +0300

Syria and Lebanon are close to reaching a judicial agreement concerning Syrian detainees in Lebanon, fugitives from Syrian justice, and Lebanese nationals in Syria, officials from both countries announced on Tuesday.

At a joint press conference in Beirut with Lebanese Justice Minister Adel Nassar and Deputy Prime Minister Tarek Mitri, Syrian Justice Minister Mazhar al-Wais stated that the two countries’ positions were “closely aligned,” and the discussions were proceeding within the correct legal framework.

Al-Wais clarified that the talks focused on judicial cooperation related to Syrian detainees in Lebanon, fugitives from Syrian justice, and Lebanese nationals in Syria. Special teams have been formed to investigate and pursue justice, he added.

Lebanese Justice Minister Nassar confirmed that “significant progress” has been made in drafting the legal text of the agreement. However, he emphasized that the agreement would not cover individuals involved in serious crimes such as murder or rape, whether committed against civilians or Lebanese military personnel.

Nassar said he had “constructive and positive” talks with the Syrian officials over the issues, underscoring both countries’ commitment to respecting the legal frameworks of the agreement, ensuring the sovereignty of Lebanon and Syria, and their shared desire for cooperation.

Meanwhile, Lebanese Deputy Prime Minister Tarek Mitri reaffirmed Lebanon’s political will to resolve the issue of detained Syrians in Lebanon. He added that minister al-Wais would visit Roumieh Prison today, as part of Syria’s right to meet its detained or convicted citizens abroad.

Mitri also revealed that around 2,300 Syrians are currently detained or serving sentences in Lebanon. Future meetings on this issue will take place alternately between Beirut and Damascus.

He further emphasized that Lebanese-Syrian relations extend beyond the judicial cooperation agreement on detainees, with ongoing discussions on border issues, refugees, and other matters.

A delegation from the Syrian Ministry of Justice, led by Minister al-Wais, arrived in Beirut on Tuesday to explore ways to support joint efforts in alleviating the plight of Syrian detainees in Lebanon and ensuring justice to protect their dignity and rights.

Saydnaya Prison: Execution Records Reveal a Death Bureaucracy on Fabricated Terrorism Charges

Wed, 08 Oct 2025 18:04:00 +0300

Exclusive documents obtained by Zaman al-Wasl reveal shocking details of executions carried out inside Sednaya Military Prison, north of Damascus, in 2016.

The documents, signed by senior judicial and military officials, not only reveal the identities of the victims, but also reveal the meticulous bureaucratic procedures through which the former regime sought to confer a false legitimacy on systematic killings.

"Terrorism" is a ready-made slur to eliminate opponents

The heart of the tragedy lies in the charges against the victims. Both Mohamad Zaher Jarada and Mohamad Dhiyab al-Tahhan (executed in 2016 on the same day and time) were sentenced to death under anti-terrorism laws for "committing terrorist acts that resulted in the death of a human being."

Human rights experts confirm that these charges are nothing more than ready-made slurs used as a tool for revenge and the elimination of political opponents and dissidents. Instead of being an application of the law, these sentences are transformed into political executions outside the framework of a fair judiciary, following trials described in an Amnesty International report as a "farce."

Shocking Details from the "Saydnaya Slaughterhouse"

Documents reveal the routine and systematic mechanism by which these sentences are carried out:

Timing of Death: The sentences were carried out at 4:00 a.m., the preferred time for "Saydnaya executions," which take place in complete secrecy.

Supervisory Committee: Committees were formed to oversee the executions, including the Public Prosecutor, a member of the court, a court clerk, a police company commander, a forensic doctor (often a dentist or plastic surgeon!), and even a cleric. This heavy presence represents an attempt to give the killings a deceptive, official, and religious character.

The "Will" as a Measure of Torture

Documents indicate that the convict was asked if he wanted to say anything before the execution, and this was recorded. This seemingly "humane" procedure occurs in the context of torture and arbitrary detention, making it an additional form of torture against the victim.

This is particularly true in what the "I Am the Detainee" campaign has documented, as most of the wills are blank except for the executioners' signatures.

A Call for Accountability

These documents confirm what international human rights organizations have documented regarding the Syrian regime's use of terrorism laws to suppress dissent and issue unjust sentences.

Saydnaya, described as a "human slaughterhouse," has witnessed thousands of deaths under torture or secret execution.

The two cases documented here represent only a drop in the ocean of violations. This evidence calls for urgent action to pressure authorities to uncover the fate of thousands of forcibly disappeared persons and bring those responsible for these crimes against humanity to justice.

Zaman al-Wasl continues to follow this thorny issue and emphasizes that revealing these documents is a necessary step toward shedding light on the darkness looming over the regime's prisons.

Hussein al-Shishakli - Zaman al-Wasl

Zaman al-Wasl publishes second list of detainees killed in Sednaya prison in 2015

Zaman Al Wasl — Sat, 04 Oct 2025 17:01:00 +0300

As part of its initiative to rewrite the lists of martyrs whose bodies were transferred from Sednaya Prison to Tishreen and Harasta Military Hospitals, Zaman al-Wasl is publishing the first list, which includes the names of 216 martyrs killed in 2015.

The source of the names is images of handwritten records. A search engine listing the dates of martyrdom by day will be launched later.

To search in a search engine, click Here.

Full Name

Sulaiman Muhammad Al-Turkawi

Ahed Ali Nassif

Mahmoud Fahd Abu Hassan

Muhammad Adel Harbas

Muhammad Hussein Talab

Fadi Muhammad Haroun

Ahmed Abdul Qader Al-Hussein

Bashar Muhammad Sari Saeed

Muhannad Ali Bakour

Hafez Hussein Al-Hussein

Khaled Shahoud Hamoud

Abdul Aziz Abdul Qader Hallaq

Youssef Nadeem Arabi

Muhammad Ahmed Turkmani

Yasser Ghazi Al-Hawrani

Muhammad Ubaida Muhammad Bashir Izz Al-Din

Muhammad Jassim Al-Sayed

Muhammad Taha Abu Nasser

Muhammad Abdul Rahman Daif Allah

Muhammad Abdul Rahman Muhammad

Khaled Saleh Shamsi

Sameer Abdul Ghani Samadi

Muhammad Muhammad Asaad Qitaz

Ghazi Mahmoud Al-Hamash

Salem Omar Suwaid

Ahmed Fawaz Mustafa

Ali Hassan Suwaidani

Rabi` Omar Hamdoun

Abdul Moneim Muhammad Zein Ibrahim

Nizar Muhammad Nadeem Awad

Ahmed Mustafa Hamdo

Ahmed Ghazi Al-Majid

Najib Muhammad Al-Masry

Faisal Najib Fakhouri

Muhyiddin Muhammad Yassin Haboush

Ali Bashar Al-Bash

Mahmoud Ezz El-Din Mosto

Amer Mahmoud Kamoun

Rateb Abdel Hamid Ghazzawi

Mohammed Ezzat Al-Shalabi

Mahmoud Abdel Rahman Al-Saadi

Mohammed Omar Amin Al-Hayyan

Bassam Mohammed Hanzi

Ibrahim Ahmed Al-Khatib

Hussein Zakaria Al-Jalkh

Alaa Al-Din Ahmed Marabi

Alaa Mohammed Nasouh Nasri

Mohammed Zain Al-Din Al-Kurdi

Amer Abdel Rahman Arnous

Saif Al-Din Mohammed Jihad Ezz El-Din

Ali Khaled Al-Saour

Mohammed Awam Al-Lujain

Kurdi Saleh Mustafa

Hassan Ahmed Shabaiti

Jamal Riyadh Al-Rifai

Hussam Mohammed Barghoud

Mohammed Khalil Al-Hussein

Hassan Mohammed Khasiri Abed Al-Mahaj

Mohammed Hassan Saeed Hijran

Maysar Ali Ezz

Mujahid Mustafa

Imad Abdo Al-Qudour

Mohammed Mahmoud Allawi

Taha Mohammed Rabie Qaddah

Farhad Mohammed Kouja

Imad Mansour Al-Awidat

Ezz El-Din Abdel Majeed Al-Hassan

Ahmed Daham Ramadan

Ahmed Mohammed Al-Ahmed

Abdel Mohammed Taqi

Saif El-Din Abdel Rahman Abu Aisha

Hamed Ali Arabi

Abdul Muhammad Abdul Aqla

Muhammad Abdul Rahman Al Khatib

Mamoun Abdullah Al Safouri

Mustafa Muhammad Al Awad

Ziad Muhammad Sultan

Omar Majed Rihawi

Muhammad Khaled Al Owaid

Muhammad Ahmed Hamoud

Essam Suleiman Juma

Muhammad Naim Al Najjar

Bassam Muhammad Bakash

Adham Omar Naddaf

Mudar Issam Awad

Ziad Muhammad Khattab

Hassan Sayyah Qatramini

Muhammad Al Ahmad Al Issa

Othman Mustafa Mustafa

Muhammad Wahid Khalil

Youssef Hussein Awad

Hussein Al Mutalib

Muhammad Diaa Adel Hamdo Al Mousa

Rami Khalil Al Masry

Ahmed Ali Al Saleh

Ezzat Muhammad Juma Al Wagha

Omar Muhammad Hosni

Muhammad Zakaria Malah

Abdul Hamid Abdul Nasser Diab

Ammar Abdullah Al Hawari

Fadi Omar Azizi

Alaa Fariz Al Hashama

Ahmed Jassim Al Bakri

Abdullah Ahmed Abdullah

Muhammad Ahmed Saber

Hassan Rashid Rabie

Abdul Hadi Khaled Al Khaled

Marwan Muhammad Al Natih

Mamoun Essam Al-Hamoud

Ahmed Mohammed Deeb Ayoub

Abdul Qader Ali Al-Ali

Sameer Ali

Ahmed Hussein Al-Ali

Suhail Abdul Latif Marai

Hamza Ibrahim Mani

Issa Abdullah Ahmed

Mudar Marwan Sarmani

Ahmed Yassin Al-Alou

Khalil Hamoud Al-Hamoud

Ayman Mohammed Khair Al-Sharqi

Mohammed Khader Al-Faraj

Abdul Jabbar Mohammed Anwar Al-Abrash

Maher Khalil Moati

Ibrahim Hassan Al-Daraa

Ali Ahmed Fouad Al-Durai'i

Saif Al-Din Hani Mohammed

Muayyad Ghazwan Dabdoub

Nabil Shaker Al-Ahmad

Mohammed Ghassan Abdul Hay

Maher Al-Bardhan

Wissam Issa Saifan

Jamal Ahmed Shahoud

Mohammed Fadlallah Kanaan

Mansour Mahmoud Al-Luluh

Loay Mamoun Sahioni

Awad Hamad Al-Ali

Dhiaa Saeed Al-Hadidi

Abdullah Rashid Al-Ahmar

Khaldoun Mamdouh Jamous

Fadi Mohsen Fakhri

Khaldoun Saleh Al-Anzi

Mahmoud Ahmed Al-Hanawi

Mahmoud Mohammed Jdei'

Khaled Mohammed Al-Ali

Mohammed Khair Issam Tangier

Mustafa Yassin Al-Sabbagh

Youssef Muhammad Ali Shiah

Ahmed Ali Al-Hussein Ibrahim

Muhammad Khalaf Al-Sheikh

Ali Fahd Al-Ayyoub

Osama Mamdouh Al-Atwa

Muhammad Akram Julaq

Muhammad Saeed Al-Jazr

Omar Muhammad Deeb Sorour

Muhammad Mamdouh Al-Akkari

Youssef Ahmed Jawad

Munir Sulaiman Awisa

Muhammad Alaa Al-Din Hussein Al-Homsi

Mustafa Marouf Taha

Muhammad Nour Mustafa Al-Zar'i

Nashat Adnan Al-Tala

Hassan Ibrahim Al-Ali

Khaled Muhammad Ali Al-Kazz

Baha Al-Din Rakan Al-Hassan

Ahmed Bashir Al-Sheikh

Khaled Ahmed Hamza

Alaa Jihad Al-Saadi

Muhammad Deeb Youssef Al-Haddad

Ahmed Abdullah Youssef

Omar Musa Muqdad

Muhammad Amer Omar Darwish

Jamal Abdul Aziz Hammadi

Muhammad Muhammad Salim Khawlani

Imad Qasim Shihan

Youssef Ghaleb Aliwi

Khaled Hassan Ahmed

Muhammad Faris Al-Shammari

Muath Hussein Saif

Abdul Majeed Ghris Al-Ahmad

Muhammad Khaled Saour

Saeed Muhammad Al-Adhd

Abdullah Taher Hamdoun

Khaled Hussein Al-Saeed Khalil

Basil Rafiq Issa

Ahmed Mutab Darwish

Alaa Dylan Amarin

Ahmed Mohammed Sobhi Barakat

Sameer Ibrahim Al-Hashem

Majd Al-Din Khalil Falaha

Marai Mohammed Aliwi

Mohammed Mustafa Shujoud

Tayseer Ahmed Al-Ghazawi

Diab Mohammed Haidar

Mahmoud Hilal Al-Marhej

Adnan Mohammed Jamil Bakour

Tuffah Marhab Mecca Al-Ibrahim

Mahmoud Ali Qasim

Haitham Ali Diab

Nidal Khader Othman

Ahmed Darar Al-Wali

Taher Mohammed Al-Rifai

Mohammed Jaber Mustafa

Haitham Abdullah Masoud

Anad Zuhair Habib

Wissam Mohammed Mahmoud Nasser

Hani Adnan Nabki

Mazen Abdul Malik Jumaa

Omar Ahmed Othman Al-Ani

Walaa Deeb Mahmoud

Khaled Abdul Aziz Bitar

Mohammed Mahmoud Jarwan

Emad Mustafa Al-Wali

Hajras Khader Al-Malham

Saleh Saad Sari

Ramadan Ahmed Malak

Darwish Mahmoud Heikal.

Detainees' Records: Top Secret Document Reveals Referral of 7 Detainees to Field Court in 2014

Sat, 04 Oct 2025 16:54:00 +0300

Zaman al-Wasl obtained a Syrian security cable, classified "Top Secret," dated June 17, 2014, issued by the General Secretariat of National Defense - Information Office. The cable reveals details regarding the referral of a number of detainees to the Military Field Court and documents the names of three detainees who died in detention centers run by the former regime.

The document, addressed to the "Major General Commander of the Military Police," reveals a request for approval to refer seven detainees to the Military Field Court.

This court, established by special decree, is considered a swift tool for adjudicating state security cases and often issues non-appealable verdicts, most of which are death sentences.

The detainees' birthplaces varied across different Syrian governorates, indicating the comprehensive nature of the arrest campaigns at that time. Among the names requested for referral are: Issam Suleiman (Latakia), Fadhil Al-Shabli (Inkhel), Ali Abdullah (Kafr Kila), Mizr Qaidi (Damascus), Muhannad Al-Hafyan (Idlib), Farouk Al-Mutlaq (Raqqa), and Saleh Ibrahim (Al-Sharida Al-Gharbiya).

Lebanon prevents Syrian delegation from visiting Roumieh prison

Sat, 04 Oct 2025 15:46:00 +0300

Lebanese authorities recently prevented a Syrian delegation from visiting Roumieh Prison, even though the visit was scheduled. They also prevented a meeting with the families of detainees in the town of Majdal Anjar, sources revealed to Zaman al-Wasl.

Despite official statements speaking of a "positive atmosphere," the sources confirm clear Lebanese intransigence, including the exclusion of a large number of Syrian detainees from any agreement and the imposition of unacceptable conditions. This is amid the dire detention conditions endured by more than 2,300 Syrian detainees, most of whom are held without trial and face accusations of torture and ill-treatment.

Human rights activists warned that the anticipated judicial agreement between Lebanon and Syria may be "weak" and full of exceptions, which would perpetuate injustice and close the last hope for detainees.

Sednaya Prison Records Reveal Transfer of Detainees' Bodies to Military Hospitals with Red Numbers and Officers' Signatures

Thu, 28 Aug 2025 20:07:00 +0300

To download all photos in one PDF file, follow the link

https://www.zamanalwsl.net/news/article/171215/

Zaman al-Wasl publishes official documents from a special register at Sednaya Military Prison, known as the "Hospital Transfer Register."

The register includes long lists of names of prisoners who were transferred to Tishreen Hospital or Harasta Military Hospital, with the word "corpse" indicated next to each name.

The documents show each name marked with a number in red, in addition to the signatures of the supervising doctors, including: Dr. Majd, Dr. Ghassan, Dr. Mohammed, and Dr. Ali. They also include details about the commanding officer, Lieutenant Ali Habib, and the signature of Colonel Mahmoud Ahmed.

These records cover the period from 2014 to 2016 and include a very large number of detainees.

These documents are part of a campaign launched by Zaman al-Wasl under the title "Death Cabinets," aiming to uncover the fate of thousands of Syrians who disappeared in the prisons of the former regime.

High-resolution images via the #Zaman_al-Wasl Telegram channel

https://t.me/ZAMANALWSLnews

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Zaman Al-Wasl documents death of 23,456 detainees of torture, field executions

Thu, 28 Aug 2025 06:03:00 +0300

After months of investigative work, Zaman al-Wasl has uncovered the largest archive documenting victims of the former regime's prisons, relying exclusively on images of official documents issued by its security and military agencies.

The archive contains 23,456 names, including children, women, and men, who died under torture or field executions, in addition to those referred to military field courts, from 2011 to 2020. The lists include Syrians from various governorates, as well as Palestinians and Jordanians, reflecting the widespread scope of the crime and its transformation into a systematic policy.

The documents reveal the official route of the bodies: from the Military Police to Harasta Hospital, from the Intelligence Branch (Unit 215) to the morgues, and from the National Defense militias to the Second Military Field Court. This sequence illustrates how the regime's institutions have become integrated links within a single killing machine.

Zaman al-Wasl is publishing these documents in an attempt to provide closure to the victims' families and establish compelling facts in the face of denial and manipulation. Within days, a second batch will be released, containing approximately 6,341 additional names, followed by lists of thousands referred to the Field Court, making all names available to the Syrian and international public.

This documentation, based on the regime's own documents, represents some of the most extensive evidence of the crimes of genocide and systematic killing within its prisons, and opens the door to delayed justice that must come.

The publication of these lists will also coincide with the release of the names of officers, non-commissioned officers, and personnel affiliated with:

1. Military Intelligence Directorate

2. Air Force Intelligence Directorate

3. General Intelligence Directorate

4. Political Security Directorate

5. Sednaya Military Prison

6. National Defense Militias in various governorates.

Editor-in-Chief Fathi Bayoud

SDF prisons: Torture and silent death

Zaman Al Wasl — Tue, 26 Aug 2025 08:56:00 +0300

The SDF militia continues to commit widespread violations against civilians in Raqqa city. Detainees in prisons such as the Cotton Prison, the Juvenile Prison, the Taamir Prison, the Central Prison, and the General Security Prison suffer from cruel treatment and systematic torture.

In the juvenile prison in particular, detainees are deprived of their most basic human rights, facing a tragic fate.

Y.M. (name withheld for security reasons) was arrested by the Asayish after an altercation with a checkpoint guard who insulted him. Inside the prison, Y.M. was subjected to brutal torture by the jailer Yasser al-Ahmar, known for his extreme cruelty.

According to testimonies from other detainees, Y.M. spent days in solitary confinement and was subjected to fatal beatings by Yasser, which led to his death in prison as a result of the brutal torture.

Although Yasser was briefly detained after the incident, his brutal practices continued after his release. Y.M.'s family demanded that the perpetrator be held accountable, but pressure from the SDF militia prevented this. They were threatened with revenge if details of the incident were published, exposing the extent of the corruption and injustice plaguing the justice system under their control.

Swathes of north and northeast Syria are controlled by a Kurdish-led administration whose de facto army, the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), spearheaded the fight that helped defeat ISIS in Syria in 2019.

Turkey accuses the main component of the SDF, the People’s Protection Units (YPG), of being affiliated with the militant Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) at home, which both Washington and Ankara consider a “terrorist” group.

Turkey has staged multiple operations in SDF areas since 2016, and Ankara-backed groups have captured several Kurdish-held towns in northern Syria in recent weeks.

Despite last March's agreement between the SDF and the Damascus government, Kurdish forces remain evasive, attempting to circumvent integration into the new Syrian army. Kurdish fears are growing with the growing rapprochement between Washington and Damascus, and President Ahmed al-Sharaa's full support for extending state sovereignty across all Syrian territory.

Testimony from Cell No. 13 at Mezzeh Military Airport

Tue, 26 Aug 2025 05:02:00 +0300

At the beginning of the revolution, the Mezzeh Military Airport prison in Damascus was the most prominent detention center, but there was no media coverage revealing what was happening inside. Detainees were dying by the dozens, and their bodies were left piled on top of each other until special trucks arrived to transport them.

In these cells, there were political detainees who had been incarcerated for years—that is, they had been imprisoned "before the revolution" on political charges.

Nawras Salem, a survivor of the Mezzeh detention center, says, "In Cell 13, the detainees weren't praying to God to save them from prison as much as they were praying that the jailer Abu Shaib's shift wouldn't be on."

He continues, "When his shift began, even the elderly would sit weeping, bidding farewell to the younger ones. The mere mention of his name was enough to make a room full of detainees tremble with fear."

At the start of his shift, he would enter the cell shouting, "Attention!" Everyone was required to be in a prostration position, facing the wall. Then he would search for the heaviest detainee to begin beating him, until his voice sounded almost like his insides were being torn apart.

His nights never passed without a torture party. He would choose a random group and order them to howl until morning. Anyone who stopped would be hit with the green hose.

He enjoyed gathering fathers and sons, or brothers and brothers, and torturing them in front of each other. Just hearing his name would turn the detainees' faces pale and trembling.

Salem recounts: "Once, we were punished for making a scene. We spent more than five hours between beatings, whipping, waterboarding, kicking, and insults. There was a young man with us named Abu Abdullah Al-Karki, who whispered to me, 'If the doctor comes, don't tell him I'm sick or need a hospital.'"

The next day, the doctor came in asking, "Who's having a heart attack?" One of them pointed to Abu Abdullah. The doctor replied, "Bring that dog, I'll wake him up."

A few days later, on a dark night, Abu Shaib came in dragging a half-dead man behind him. His body was emaciated, his hands swollen, his teeth broken, his face burned by a candle, and his stench was foul. He was Abu Abdullah himself. He came home from the hospital bearing signs of torture from which he had never recovered. Just three days later, his comrades carried him out, wrapped in a blanket. Abu Shaib greeted him with a kick to the face and said, "Didn't you just die, brother...?"

Nawras Salem concluded his testimony: "This is the bare minimum. Abu Shaib was the nightmare of Cell 13, and his name alone was enough to sow death in people's eyes."

Zaman Al-Wasl

Confidential document reveals names of 111 military personnel run Sednaya prison

Mon, 25 Aug 2025 07:14:00 +0300

Zaman al-Wasl obtained a list revealing for the first time the identities of 111 officers, non-commissioned officers, and military personnel working inside the notorious Sednaya Military Prison, based on an internal document signed in 2022.

The document represents a list of financial rewards granted to prison workers on the occasion of Syrian Army Day (for volunteers). The document is one of the most prominent documents leaked about the prison, as it contains detailed information on a large number of military police personnel overseeing the prison, including their full names, ranks, military numbers, and units to which they belong, in addition to their official signatures.

Document Details

- Source: A photo of the document was taken inside the prison itself on "Liberation Day." Zaman al-Wasl does not have the original paper copy.

- Content: A list of 111 names of personnel working at Sednaya Military Prison.

- Classification: The list includes 7 officers, more than 40 assistants and first assistants, in addition to sergeants, corporals, and conscripts.

- Purpose: To award cash rewards ("gifts") on the occasion of Army Day 2022.

The historical and judicial significance of this document lies in its:

1. It is the first comprehensive document: It compiles a large number of names of prison staff into a single, documented list.

2. It provides detailed information: It provides accurate data (name, rank, military number, unit) that can be relied upon in investigations and prosecutions.

3. It is potential evidence: The document provides important clues that may help shed light on the authorities overseeing one of the world's most secret and feared prisons, which has been linked to gross human rights violations, including torture, extrajudicial executions, and the enforced disappearance of thousands of detainees since 2011.

Zaman al-Wasl delayed publishing the document for a full nine months, hoping that those on the list would be arrested.

The document is now published with the aim of:

- Supporting transitional justice: By highlighting individuals suspected of involvement in potential violations and providing information that may be crucial to investigators, victims, and their families in the future. Documenting Crimes: Contributing to Preserving Memory and Documenting Structures of Repression.

This publication serves as a key reference for international human rights organizations, such as the United Nations, and local organizations demanding accountability for perpetrators of war crimes and crimes against humanity in Syria.

Read the original post Here

Sednaya Prison guards in the grip of Internal Security in Homs

Sun, 24 Aug 2025 03:56:00 +0300

Internal Security Forces in Homs arrested a number of former prison guards at Sednaya Prison, who were implicated in serious violations against detainees.

According to survivor testimonies, one of these guards "fed" detainees his own urine, in one of the most horrific forms of humiliation and deliberate violation of human dignity.

In a remarkable development, some of the victims met their torturers face-to-face during interrogations, a scene that reopened painful wounds from the past within the walls of the infamous Sednaya Prison.

Former National Security records confirm execution of detainees immediately upon arrest

Sat, 23 Aug 2025 10:00:00 +0300

Electronic correspondence sent from several security branches to the "National Security Directorate," which was headed by Major General Ali Mamlouk, reveals the extent of the human tragedy that befell detainees in the security apparatus' dungeons during the first years of the Syrian revolution.

While the fate of tens of thousands of detainees remains unknown to this day, some documents contain explicit indications that a number of individuals died after their arrest, either as a result of direct "liquidation" operations, during raids and clashes, due to torture, or for reasons that remained shrouded in vagueness and deliberate negligence.

This list includes the names of individuals who were reported as having "died" or "killed," as stated in the official security text within the "Security Investigations" file. However, there remains doubt about the accuracy of some names, given the deliberate negligence and carelessness with which these reports and cables were written.

However, it confirms that "field executions" were systematic in Assad's policies for dealing with detainees, whether civilians or even members of the army and police who defected or opposed his policies.

The following is a list of the names of detainees whose arrest dates were documented and whose subsequent deaths were confirmed by documents.

Note: There remains some doubt about the accuracy of some names due to the deliberate negligence and carelessness in writing these reports and cables.

Names and Date of Arrest:

1. Ahmed Ibrahim Bakri (February 16, 2012)

2. Ahmed Amin Mardash (April 6, 2012)

3. Ahmed Khaled Farhoud (July 16, 2012)

4. Ahmed Abdel Hamid Najjar (June 14, 2012)

5. Ahmed Abdel Rahman Al-Hassan (March 26, 2012)

6. Ahmed Mohammed Al-Khalil (July 26, 2012)

7. Ahmed Mohammed Hanan (April 16, 2012)

8. Ahmed Mohammed Adnan Tutu (March 25, 2012)

9. Ahmed Mohammed Nasser Al-Sheikh (August 15, 2012)

10. Ayman Mohammed Khalil (July 20, 2012)

12. Anas Ali Sorour (March 22, 2012)

13. Iyad Abdel Latif Al-Abbar (March 1, 2012)

14. Basil Muhammad Al-Baldi (July 30, 2012)

15. Badr Abdul Salam Taliti (February 11, 2012)

16. Bassam Muhammad Attia Damen (May 1, 2012)

17. Bashar Bassam Al-Halabi (July 1, 2012)

18. Jamal Abdul Rahim Al-Amour (July 3, 2012)

19. Jihad Hussein Nassif (July 20, 2012)

20. Jamil Hikmat Al-Fashtaki (February 11, 2012)

21. Hamed Muhammad Hazwani (June 21, 2012)

22. Hassan Nouris Nasees (June 21, 2012)

23. Hassan Sobhi Farah (September 10, 2012)

24. Hassan Walid Mabrouka (2011-07-08)

25. Hamza Hussein Al-Zarqa (2012-06-21)

26. Khaled Abdul Sattar Khawlani (2011-11-18)

27. Khaled Abdul Karim Al-Amouri (2012-06-21)

28. Khaled Nabil Salouha (2012-02-25)

29. Danf Nader Al-Danf (2012-08-30)

30. Radh Muhammad Saeed Matar (2012-08-25)

31. Rami Najmuddin Al-Ubaid (2012-08-05)

32. Radwan Ali Al-Dibs (2012-02-24)

33. Riyad Fadl Al-Essa (2011-09-30)

34. Ziad Saeed Al-Rihani (2012-03-22)

35. Samer Muhammad Al-Sheikh (August 16, 2012)

36. Saria Mohammed Saeed Matar (August 25, 2012)

37. Simon Adeeb Kasabra (January 17, 2012)

38. Shadi Daham Al Mubarak (March 27, 2012)

39. Sheikh Mohammed Sheikho (January 15, 2012)

40. Sakhr Mohammed Al Ali (April 3, 2012)

41. Saleh Asaad Shaddad (March 6, 2012)

42. Amer Abdo Namoura (April 6, 2012)

43. Amer Ali Shaker (August 29, 2012)

44. Adel Junaid Al Hassan (December 17, 2011)

45. Abdul Rahman Khaled Matar (June 20, 2012)

46. Abdul Rahman Mohammed Ali Al Hallaq (April 5, 2012)

47. Abdul Rahman Abdul Ghaffar Qwaider (June 20, 2012)

48. Abdul Nasser Hassan Dukhan (October 24, 2011)

49. Abdullah Mustafa Al-Zaher (July 12, 2012)

50. Corporal Jaber Muhammad Adeeb Al-Rabdawi (February 29, 2012)

51. Ezz El-Din Ali Ali Salloum (July 15, 2012)

52. Ali Sobhi Othman (April 30, 2012)

53. Ali Abdul Hamid Qarout (July 24, 2012)

54. Ali Mahmoud Reda Hamada (September 10, 2012)

56. Omar Walid Namoura (April 6, 2012)

57. Omar Ziad Najjar (August 11, 2011)

58. Ghazi Abdul Salam Dabouri (February 11, 2012)

59. Fadi Mustafa Hijazi (February 11, 2012)

60. Fadi Muhammad Murad (April 6, 2012)

61. Fadel Hassan Kulayb (June 14, 2012)

62. Farhan Adnan Naqsho (September 26, 2012)

63. Fawaz Juma Jarad (July 26, 2012)

64. Qadri Bassam Jamali (May 10, 2012)

65. Kamal Abdul Sattar Khawlani (November 18, 2011)

66. Mazen Jamil Al-Khader (October 15, 2012)

67. Muhammad Adeeb Hadidi (February 25, 2012)

68. Muhammad Amin Abdul Rahman Mansour (November 2, 2011)

69. Muhammad Anas Nabil Qaddour (2012-07-20)

70. Muhammad Ismail Al-Muntalib (2012-08-01)

71. Muhammad Bashir Darkhabani (2012-03-07)

72. Muhammad Bashir Muhammad Haitham Al-Saqqal (2012-07-20)

73. Muhammad Hassan Mathbut (2012-01-30)

74. Muhammad Saeed Mahmoud Al-Hamawi (2012-05-03)

75. Muhammad Abdullah Ghanaj (2012-06-20)

76. Muhammad Abdullah Kayali (2012-08-01)

77. Muhammad Abdul-Haseeb Manzalji (2012-07-20)

78. Muhammad Abdul-Rahman Hajjar (2012-07-21)

79. Muhammad Abdul-Razzaq Thalja (2012-07-20)

80. Muhammad Abdul-Ghani Daghmoush (January 31, 2012)

81. Muhammad Abd al-Salam al-Khurasan (July 18, 2012)

82. Muhammad Issam Nasser Jandali (July 30, 2012)

83. Muhammad Ali Majhud (March 14, 2012)

84. Muhammad Fadi Muhammad Radwan al-Qudsi (June 25, 2012)

85. Muhammad Wafa Mansour (January 26, 2012)

86. Muhammad Yasser Nadim Matar (August 25, 2012)

87. Mahmoud Omar Adla (February 11, 2012)

88. Mahmoud Khaled Farhoud (July 16, 2012)

89. Madar Muhammad al-Saeed (November 24, 2011)

90. Mustafa Muhammad Jalaq (October 18, 2011)

91. Mustafa Muhammad Hijazi (February 11, 2012)

92. Mustafa Abdul Sattar Khawlani (November 18, 2011)

93. Moaz Ismail Al-Khawli (November 23, 2011)

94. Muawiya Muhammad Raja Ziada (July 26, 2012)

95. Mahdi Fouad Assaf (September 13, 2011)

96. Nidal Abdullah Ghanaj (June 20, 2012)

97. Nimer Awad Rabiei (November 24, 2011)

98. Nizar Wajih Zein Al-Arab (January 12, 2012)

99. Hashem Ahmed Miznazi (November 20, 2011)

100. Wael Muhammad Al-Droubi (June 10, 2012)

101. Wahib Mahmoud Al-Jarad (July 26, 2012)

102. Yasser Ali Hamada (July 20, 2012)

103. Yasser Asri Al-Hamoud (May 16, 2012)

104. Yahya Mustafa Kallas Al-Halabi (August 17, 2011)

105. Yazan Fawaz Al-Mawsili (August 30, 2012)

106. Youssef Ali Rajab (April 6, 2012)

107. Youssef Muhammad Bakir (September 23, 2012)

Hussein Al-Shishakli - Zaman Al-Wasl