A media activist and member of the Yekiti Party of Kurdistan, named as Fanar Mahmoud, from al Qameshli city in the northeastern suburbs of Hasaka governorate, was arrested by Syrian Democratic Forces in the city on January 23, 2021, over his criticism of the SDF’s practices via his Facebook account, and taken to an undisclosed location.
SNHR notes that no member of Fanar’s family has been informed of the reason for his arrest or of his current whereabouts, with his phone being confiscated, preventing him from contacting his family. SNHR fears that he will be subjected to torture and ultimately classified as forcibly ‘disappeared’, like approximately 85 percent of all detained persons.
We confirm that about 3,398 Syrian citizens are still detained or forcibly disappeared in the SDF’s detention centers, constituting a grave threat to their wellbeing given the spread of the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic.
