Former detainee of Syria's 'human slaughterhouse' says Assad regime overthrow 'worth everything'
White Helmets search notorious Syrian prison after reports of prisoners trapped in underground cells
Omar Alshogre watches in awe as political detainees at one of Syria's most notorious prisons are released from an institution that was made to torture and kill anyone accused of speaking out against the Syrian government.
"The moment we are living today, freedom of the Assad regime, it's worth all the pain, all the suffering, all the fear, all the disappointment, all the betrayal," said Alshogre, who was detained and tortured in the regime's prisons for three years.
"It's worth everything. The joy I felt yesterday, it's worth going through everything for it."
In less than two weeks, insurgents in Syria swept across the country in an effort to gain control of the land and topple former Syrian president Bashar al-Assad and his tyrant family's half-century rule.
One of the first tasks at hand: freeing those who were forcibly disappeared and detained in prisons and security facilities in cities including Aleppo, Homs, Hama and Damascus, enduring years of incommunicado detention since the Syrian revolution erupted in 2011 and even decades beyond.
Families in Syria, most of whom have either experienced being detained or have relatives or friends who have been taken by the regime, waited anxiously outside prisons and security branches wondering if their loved ones were alive or dead.
Thousands of them flocked to Sednaya military prison, one of the facilities liberated by the rebel groups. There, the White Helmets, a volunteer rescue group also known as Syrian Civil Defence, were conducting searches "focusing on hidden doors or undiscovered basements" after reports from some survivors that others may be trapped underground.
In a post on X, the group said its teams — which include search and rescue units, wall-breaching specialists, iron door-opening crews, trained dog units and medical responders — were all working on finding any hidden cells. As of early evening Monday, no evidence was found to confirm these reports.
"The search will continue until all areas of the prison have been thoroughly inspected," the White Helmets said.
Guards 'creative' in torture methods
According to a United Nations report, there are more than 100 detention facilities across Syria, along with an unknown number of secret facilities.
Of those, the two most notorious prisons are Tadmor, in the desert of the ancient city of Palmyra, and Sednaya, known as the "human slaughterhouse," which is on the north outskirts of Damascus.
Alshogre, who spent one year in Sednaya before he was released, says the guards were "creative" in torturing detainees both physically and mentally.
"There's nothing like Sednaya prison. It's the worst torture chamber I ever seen," Alshogre, who was transferred to a total of 10 Syrian prisons, told CBC News Monday.
"You're not allowed to scream. You're not allowed to speak. You whisper. And if they hit you, you have to keep the scream in your heart.… But if you let it out, they torture you."
Torture, executions and starvation
Syria's prisons have been infamous for their harsh conditions. Torture is systematic, say human rights groups, whistleblowers and former detainees. Secret executions have been reported at more than two dozen facilities run by Syrian intelligence, as well as at other sites.
In 2013, a Syrian military defector known as "Caesar" smuggled out over 53,000 photographs that human rights groups say showed clear evidence of rampant torture, disease and starvation in Syria's prison facilities.
Syria's feared security apparatus and prisons served to isolate Assad's opponents, as well as instil fear among his own people, said Lina Khatib, associate fellow in the Middle East and North Africa program at the London think-tank Chatham House.
"Anxiety about being thrown in one of Assad's notorious prisons created wide mistrust among Syrians," Khatib said. "Assad nurtured this culture of fear to maintain control and crush political opposition."
Alshogre, director of detainees affairs at the Syrian Emergency Task Force, said Syrians will work to ensure Assad, who was granted political asylum in Russia, is prosecuted for the crimes and atrocities committed.
"It's not over for him, he will be prosecuted," Alshogre said.
Dozens of detainees secretly executed every week
Videos shared widely across social media over the weekend showed dozens of prisoners running in celebration after the insurgents released them, some barefoot and others wearing little clothing. One of them screams with joy after he finds out the government has fallen.
Women detainees in Sednaya, some with their children, screamed as men broke the locks off their cell doors on Sunday.
Amnesty International and other groups say that dozens of people were secretly executed every week in Sednaya, estimating that up to 13,000 Syrians were killed between 2011 and 2016.
"Don't be afraid … Bashar Assad has fallen! Why are you afraid?" said one of the rebels in a video, as he tried to rush streams of women out of their tiny, crowded cells.
As of Monday afternoon, tens of thousands of detainees had been freed, said Rami Abdurrahman of the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a Britain-based pro-opposition war monitor.
'I haven't seen the sun until today,' says freed prisoner
Bashar Barhoum, one of the freed prisoners Sunday, woke in his dungeon prison cell in Damascus at dawn that day, thinking it would be the last day of his life.
The 63-year-old writer was supposed to have been executed after being imprisoned for seven months.
But he soon realized the men at the door weren't from Assad's notorious security forces, ready to take him to his death. Instead, they were rebels coming to set him free.
"I haven't seen the sun until today," Barhoum told The Associated Press after walking in disbelief through the streets of Damascus. "Instead of being dead tomorrow, thank God, he gave me a new lease on life."
Rebels struggled to control the chaos Monday as crowds gathered by the Court of Justice in Damascus.
Heba, who only gave her first name while speaking to the Associated Press, said she was looking for her brother and brother-in-law, who were detained while reporting a stolen car in 2011 and haven't been seen since.
"They took away so many of us," said Heba, whose mother's cousin also disappeared. "We know nothing about them.... They [the Assad government] burned our hearts."
UN urges access to be granted to detention centres
Following the release of political prisoners, the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) urged all parties in Syria Sunday to facilitate access for independent humanitarian and human rights groups to the country, including detention facilities.
It stressed the importance of preserving documents for evidence.
"It is incumbent on those now in charge to ensure that such atrocities are never again repeated within the walls of Sednaya or any other detention centre in Syria," said Paulo Sérgio Pinheiro, chair of the commission, in a statement.
Meanwhile, many Syrians hold hope that this change will lead to a completely different country — one that treats everyone equally.
"Now it's our responsibility, as Syrians, to show the world that we actually wanted to have freedom and democracy," Alshogre said.
"We need to make sure we monitor the processes that are happening today to make sure we end up having an election and having a government that we want."
Corrections
- A previous version of this story said that up to 13,000 detainees were secretly executed every week. In fact, Amnesty International and other groups said that dozens of people were secretly executed every week, and estimated that up to 13,000 Syrians were killed between 2011 and 2016.Dec 09, 2024 5:13 PM ET
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With files from CBC News Network, The Associated Press