Amnesty International asks Syria to reveal fate of disappeared prisoners
Amnesty International asks Syria to reveal fate of disappeared prisoners
Amnesty International has called on the President of Syria to reveal exactly what happened to 52 prisoners who went missing during and after disturbances at a military prison that also left at least 22 people dead.
The clashes between inmates and military police at Saydnaya Military Prison near Damascus began on 5 July 2008. Unconfirmed reports say the violence erupted after police officers shot dead nine Islamist prisoners.
"It is high time that the Syrian authorities revealed what occurred at Saydnaya Military Prison two years ago, and what has happened to the more than 50 inmates who have not been seen since,” said Malcolm Smart, Amnesty International’s director for the Middle East and North Africa.
Families, lawyers and human rights organizations have campaigned for an independent investigation into the disturbances but the Syrian authorities have revealed few details about them or what happened afterwards.
An information blackout, including a year-long ban on all communication with inmates, has made it impossible to independently ascertain the exact nature of the disturbances, how long they lasted or who was responsible for sparking the violence.
According to unconfirmed reports, Military Police officers threw copies of the Qur’an on the floor during a routine search of the prison, and then shot dead nine Islamist prisoners who tried to pick them up.
Unarmed Islamist prisoners are said then to have overpowered the police, taking several hostages together with the prison director, and to have seized their guns and mobile phones – which they used to call their families to alert them and local and international human rights organizations about what was happening.
Amnesty International sent Syrian President Bashar al-Assad the names of the 52 prisoners missing from Saydnaya requesting that their fate and whereabouts be clarified.
The clashes between inmates and military police at Saydnaya Military Prison near Damascus began on 5 July 2008. Unconfirmed reports say the violence erupted after police officers shot dead nine Islamist prisoners.
"It is high time that the Syrian authorities revealed what occurred at Saydnaya Military Prison two years ago, and what has happened to the more than 50 inmates who have not been seen since,” said Malcolm Smart, Amnesty International’s director for the Middle East and North Africa.
Families, lawyers and human rights organizations have campaigned for an independent investigation into the disturbances but the Syrian authorities have revealed few details about them or what happened afterwards.
An information blackout, including a year-long ban on all communication with inmates, has made it impossible to independently ascertain the exact nature of the disturbances, how long they lasted or who was responsible for sparking the violence.
According to unconfirmed reports, Military Police officers threw copies of the Qur’an on the floor during a routine search of the prison, and then shot dead nine Islamist prisoners who tried to pick them up.
Unarmed Islamist prisoners are said then to have overpowered the police, taking several hostages together with the prison director, and to have seized their guns and mobile phones – which they used to call their families to alert them and local and international human rights organizations about what was happening.
Amnesty International sent Syrian President Bashar al-Assad the names of the 52 prisoners missing from Saydnaya requesting that their fate and whereabouts be clarified.
