Syrian Democratic Forces carried out raids on al Sh-heil city in the eastern suburbs of Deir Ez-Zour suburbs on May 20, 2021. SNHR documented the arrest of 16 civilians who were taken to an undisclosed location. SDF imposed a curfew on the city during the arrest campaign.
SNHR notes that no members of the detainees’ families were informed of their arrest or whereabouts, with their phones being confiscated, preventing them from contacting their families or lawyers. SNHR fears that they will be subjected to torture and ultimately classified as forcibly ‘disappeared’, like approximately 85 percent of all detained persons in Syria.
SNHR can confirm that at least 3,784 Syrian citizens are still detained or forcibly disappeared in the SDF’s detention centers, constituting a grave threat to the detainees’ wellbeing, especially given the spread of the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic.
