Syrian rebels vow to close Assad's prisons and seek justice for victims

Dec 12, 2024 - Syrian rebel forces have vowed to shut down the notorious prisons once controlled by President Bashar al-Assad, targeting those responsible for the torture and deaths of thousands of detainees.

Ahmed al-Sharaa, a leading figure in the rebellion, announced plans to disband Assad’s security forces as part of their efforts to dismantle the regime’s power structure. His remarks follow the release of distressing footage showing thousands of prisoners being freed from the Saydnaya prison, a site labelled as a “human slaughterhouse” by human rights groups.

According to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, nearly 60,000 people were tortured or killed in Assad’s prisons, adding weight to the call for accountability.

Since the regime's fall, families across Syria have rushed to these notorious facilities, desperate to find loved ones who vanished into the brutal prison system.

In the wake of his government’s collapse, Assad fled to Russia early on Sunday, where he and his family have been granted asylum, after rebel forces captured Damascus.