A man, identified as Mahmoud Ahmad Shehada from Batbo in western rural Aleppo governorate, was arrested on September 12, 2024, by Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) after calling him in for questioning to the Police Station in al-Atareb city in western rural Aleppo governorate, over his participation in anti-HTS protests in rural Aleppo governorate. He was then taken to an undisclosed location.
The Syrian Network for Human Rights (SNHR) notes that Mahmoud has not been allowed to contact his family. We are concerned that he may be subjected to torture in detention and may go on to become another enforced disappearance cases, with 85% of all those detained in Syria falling into this category.
We call for the provision of both material and moral reparations for the victims of such detentions and for their families, and call on all parties to put an end to all arbitrary detentions whose only purpose is to spread mass fear and extort people.
We also call on the HTS to reveal the fate of thousands of people forcibly disappeared at its hands.
