DAMASCUS, Syria — The death of a young man with a serious medical condition who was arrested and allegedly beaten by Syrian security forces has stirred up dark memories of torture and other abuse in detention centers under the Assad dynasty’s decades-long rule.
Syria’s Minister of Emergency and Disaster Management Raed al-Saleh, who was previously head of the White Helmets, said on X that Ghamira had died of “complications from cerebral and gastrointestinal hemorrhaging” that “resulted from a beating he sustained after being detained at the al-Haffah police station. Ghamira’s uncle, Issam Ghamira, said in a video interview with state news agency SANA that the family had told the police chief in al-Haffah that his nephew had hemophilia and warned against hitting him. Despite that, he said, his nephew was hit while in custody.
Syrians have taken to social media and the streets in recent days to demand answers about the death of Mohammad Ghamira, who was buried Monday in his hometown of al-Haffah in coastal Latakia province. Officials with the government of interim President Ahmad al-Sharaa have promised accountability in Ghamira’s case, but rights groups say it is not an isolated incident and that abuses persist in detention centers.
Investigation Launched Following Death of Detainee
Syria’s interior ministry has initiated an investigation into the circumstances surrounding the death of Ghamira, leading to the detention of seven personnel for questioning.
In a related report, the human rights organization Syrians for Truth and Justice highlighted ongoing issues within detention facilities, detailing that severe beatings, electric shocks, humiliation, threats, deprivation of basic necessities, and deaths in custody remain prevalent practices among various security and military forces.
Families for Freedom, an advocacy group representing relatives of detainees, expressed deep concern over Ghamira’s death, stating, “What happened to Mohammed reopens the wounds of torture and death in detention for thousands of Syrian families — practices Syrians have struggled for years to end, and the recurrence of which cannot be accepted today.”
