A man, identified as Khalaf Salman al-Mesh’al who works as a raqi (the Islamic equivalent of an exorcist), was shot dead on October 14, 2023, by gunmen we have not yet been able to identify from a passing motorbike in al-Sabha town in eastern Deir Ez-Zour governorate.
The area is under the control of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF). The Syrian Network for Human Rights (SNHR) is still trying to locate eyewitnesses to obtain more information about the incident. We call on the controlling forces to uphold their responsibilities for protecting civilians in their areas, to investigate this incident, and to make the findings of the investigation known to the public. Syria will never have true stability without a genuine political transition process towards democracy within a fixed timetable.
