Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) carried out a raid targeting Mhaimeda village in the western suburbs of Deir Ez-Zour governorate, on October 25, 2022. The raid followed an anti-SDF demonstration in the village, during which protestors decried the living and service situation in SDF-held areas.
SNHR documented the arrest of five civilians in the raid, all of whom were taken to an undisclosed location.
The detainees’ family have not been informed of the arrests, with the SDF seizing the detainees’ phones and preventing them from contacting their families. We are concerned that the detainees may be subjected to torture in detention and may go on to be classified as forcibly disappeared, with 85% of all those detained falling into this category.
We call for the provision of reparations for the victims and their families, both materially and morally, 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 for revealing the fate of the thousands of persons forcibly disappeared by the SDF.
