Thousands of Syrians are waiting for news of their detained or missing relatives outside the notorious Sednaya prison, about 30 kilometers from Damascus, on Dec. 9, 2024, following the fall of the Assad regime. (Credit: Mohammad al-Rifai/AFP)
In a room at Ibn al-Nasif Hospital in Damascus, dozens of Syrians crowded around three almost motionless figures. Bodies so emaciated it's hard to believe they are alive. It was a few days after the fall of Bashar al-Assad, who fled on Dec. 8, 2024. Families were searching for their missing loved ones who were held in the regime's prisons. Sitting in a wheelchair, a woman with a shaved head didn't say a word. Her empty gaze revealed a soul devoured by the hell of concentration camps. She is among those whom Syrians sometimes call “intifa,” the extinguished. “Some haven't spoken for years. In detention, they weren't allowed to say their names for fear of being tortured more,” explained Dr. Tarek al-Moussa, technical coordinator for the Independent Doctors Association's (IDA) programs. Originally from Raqqa, this...
In a room at Ibn al-Nasif Hospital in Damascus, dozens of Syrians crowded around three almost motionless figures. Bodies so emaciated it's hard to believe they are alive. It was a few days after the fall of Bashar al-Assad, who fled on Dec. 8, 2024. Families were searching for their missing loved ones who were held in the regime's prisons. Sitting in a wheelchair, a woman with a shaved head didn't say a word. Her empty gaze revealed a soul devoured by the hell of concentration camps. She is among those whom Syrians sometimes call “intifa,” the extinguished. “Some haven't spoken for years. In detention, they weren't allowed to say their names for fear of being tortured more,” explained Dr. Tarek al-Moussa, technical coordinator for the Independent Doctors Association's (IDA) programs. Originally from Raqqa,...