Human Rights Defenders: Clarify the Status of the Missing Syrians

Human rights organizations have called on the Syrian government, rebels, their supporters, and parties involved in peace negotiations to respond to the tens of thousands of Syrian families searching for their relatives who have been "deliberately disappeared or gone missing." In a request published by Human Rights Watch on September 8, negotiators in the Syrian crisis were urged to ensure that the status of thousands of missing persons will be clarified. The organization referenced a United Nations investigative council report on the disappeared opponents of the Syrian government and its "extent," reminding that this issue could constitute a "crime against humanity." Human Rights Watch called for the immediate establishment of an independent body to investigate the status and possible whereabouts of the missing persons and to identify the bodies found in mass graves. Amnesty International also stated that "besides the violence and bloodshed of the Syrian war, the fate of those who have gone missing after being detained by government officials or captured by armed groups is another tragedy that has been widely overlooked by the international community." Previously, 169 Syrian civil organizations had written to Stefan de Mistura, the UN special envoy for Syria, stating that the people of that country are "increasingly despairing of a process that remains unresolved." They called for prioritizing the protection of civilians and the status of detainees. These requests were published coinciding with the "International Day of the Disappeared" on August 30. Murder, kidnapping, detentions, and secret arrests can all be considered reasons for the disappearance of individuals. According to Article 7 of the Rome Statute, which is the statute of the International Criminal Court, the enforced disappearance of persons can lead to charges of "crimes against humanity" for those who carry it out. Previously, the Syrian government had been accused by Amnesty International of disappearing thousands of prisoners and committing widespread killings. The Ministry of Justice of Bashar al-Assad's government denied these accusations. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a monitoring organization of the civil war based in London, estimated that the Syrian government is responsible for the disappearance or enforced disappearance of nearly 75,000 citizens. At the same time, reports have emerged of the killing or disappearance of soldiers, militants, and civilians by rebel groups. For example, in 2013, Human Rights Watch accused rebels of committing hostage-taking and mass killings of Alawites. Another estimate indicates that at least 2,000 Syrian citizens are held captive by rebels and ISIS. Human Rights Watch states that improving the situation in Syria is impossible without successfully clarifying the status of the disappeared and missing persons.