Ayman Adel al Masri, born in 1963, from Damascus city, who was a resident of Qedsayya city in Damascus suburbs governorate, was arrested along with his wife by Syrian regime forces on February 17, 2022 in a raid on their home in the city. His wife was released in March 2022, while his fate remained unknown as the regime consistently denied detaining him and refused to allow anyone, even a lawyer, to visit him. On May 5, 2022, he was released in accordance with Legislative Decree No. 7 for 2022, which included the release of detainees accused of terrorism by the Syrian regime. We have received information confirming that he suffered physical and psychological torture during his detention inside the Syrian regime forces’ detention centers in Damascus city, which caused the deterioration of his health after his release and he suffered a heart attack. On May 22, 2022, Mr. al Masri was transported to al Mouwasat Hospital in Damascus City where he died.
SNHR can confirm that at least 132,667 Syrian citizens are currently still detained or forcibly disappeared in the regime’s detention centers, constituting a grave threat to the detainees’ wellbeing, particularly given the spread of the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic.
SNHR notes that at least 14,449 Syrian citizens have died due to torture in Syrian regime detention centers.
