Syrian ex-prisoners haunted by horrors of ‘salt rooms’

Up to 100,000 people have died in Syrian regime prisons since 2011, a fifth of the war’s entire death toll, according to Britain-based monitoring group the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights. (AFP/File)
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Updated 21 September 2022
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Syrian ex-prisoners haunted by horrors of ‘salt rooms’

GAZIANTEP, Turkey: When a Syrian prison guard tossed him into a dimly lit room, the inmate Abdo was surprised to find himself standing ankle-deep in what appeared to be salt.

On that day in the winter of 2017, the terrified young man had already been locked up for two years in war-torn Syria’s largest and most notorious prison, Sednaya.

Having been largely deprived of salt all that time in his meager prison rations, he brought a handful of the coarse white crystals to his mouth with relish.

Moments later came the second, grisly, surprise: As a barefoot Abdo was treading gingerly across the room, he stumbled on a corpse, emaciated and half-buried in the salt.

Abdo soon found another two bodies, partially dehydrated by the mineral.

He had been thrown into what Syrian inmates call “salt rooms” — primitive mortuaries designed to preserve bodies in the absence of refrigerated morgues.

The corpses were being treated in a way already known to the embalmers of ancient Egypt, to keep up with the industrial-scale prison killings under President Bashar Assad’s regime.

The salt rooms are described in detail for the first time in an upcoming report by the Association of Detainees and the Missing in Sednaya Prison, or ADMSP.

In additional research and interviews with former inmates, AFP found that at least two such salt rooms were created inside Sednaya.

Abdo, a man from Homs now aged 30 and living in eastern Lebanon, asked that his real name not be published for fear of reprisals against him and his family.

Speaking in his small rental flat in an unfinished building, he recounted the day he was thrown into the salt room, which served as his holding cell ahead of a military court hearing.

“My first thought was: May God have no mercy on them!” he said. “They have all this salt but don’t put any in our food!

“Then I stepped on something cold. It was someone’s leg.”

Up to 100,000 people have died in Syrian regime prisons since 2011, a fifth of the war’s entire death toll, according to Britain-based monitoring group the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.

Abdo, fortunate to have survived, described the salt room on the first floor of the red building as a rectangle of roughly six by eight meters (20 by 26 feet), with a rudimentary toilet in a corner.

“I thought this would be my fate: I would be executed and killed,” he said, recalling how he curled up in a corner, crying and reciting verses from the Qur’an.

The guard eventually returned to escort him to the court, and Abdo lived to tell the tale.

On his way out of the room, he had noticed a pile of body bags near the door.

Like tens of thousands of others, he had been jailed on blanket terrorism charges. He was released in 2020 but says the experience scarred him for life.

“This was the hardest thing I ever experienced,” he said. “My heart died in Sednaya. If someone announced the death of my brother right now, I wouldn’t feel anything.”


Iranians welcome ceasefire but fearful for future

Updated 4 sec ago
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Iranians welcome ceasefire but fearful for future

“It was an unnecessary war and we people paid the price for the authorities’ war-mongering policies,” said Shima
One man in a busy Tehran street, who also asked to remain anonymous, said “It’s the people who are paying the price — whether our people or theirs”

DUBAI: After 12 days of Israeli airstrikes that echoed in cities around the country, killing hundreds and sending waves of people fleeing their homes, Iranians voiced relief on Tuesday at the surprise overnight announcement of a ceasefire.

For those in the Iranian capital it brought the prospect of a clean-up, a return to normal life and the soothing — for now at least — of anxiety about a further escalation and sustained warfare.

Many Iranians who fled the strikes were also glad, able to return home after tiring, expensive stays outside the city in rented accommodation or with relatives.

“I am overjoyed. It is over and we finally can live in peace. It was an unnecessary war and we people paid the price for the authorities’ war-mongering policies,” said Shima, 40, from Shiraz, withholding her name for fear of reprisals.

Just 24 hours earlier, plumes of smoke hung over parts of the capital as Israel targeted the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps and its paramilitary Basij militia, as well as Evin prison at the foot of the Alborz Mountains.

One man in a busy Tehran street, who also asked to remain anonymous, said “It’s the people who are paying the price — whether our people or theirs. Both sides are bearing the cost so it’s better that this happened sooner rather than later.”

Israel has repeatedly warned residents to leave large swathes of the city before it conducted airstrikes, clogging the highways out of Tehran with vast traffic jams.

Exhausted and running out of cash, many of them had started to return home even before the ceasefire was announced.

Arash, a 39-year-old government employee, had taken his family to Damavand, a mountain
resort 35 miles east of Tehran that is popular for its clean air and bucolic setting.

They returned to Tehran two days ago. “My wife and two children were terrified of the bombings but renting even a modest room in Damavand for any length of time is beyond my limited budget,” he said.

Noushin, 35, drove almost five hours with her husband and child to stay with her mother-in-law in Sari, near Iran’s Caspian coast. But the house was already crowded with relatives seeking shelter and Noushin decided they were better off at home.

“My child misses her room. I miss my house. How long can we live like this?” she asked. “Even if there’s another attack, I’d rather die in my own home.”


NO SIGNS OF PROTESTS
Israel launched its surprise air war on June 13, hitting nuclear sites and killing military commanders in the worst blow to Iran since Iraq invaded in 1980, and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the strikes could result in regime change.

However, there have been no signs of significant street protests against the Islamic Republic.

Iranians contacted by Reuters, including some who oppose the Islamic Republic and have protested against it in the past, said the airstrikes had brought people to rally around national feeling in the face of what they saw as foreign aggression.

Still, for many Iranians there is anger at the top ranks of the nation’s leadership, and for those returning home the reality of a sanctions-hit economy remains.

“This is unacceptable. This is brutal. Why are we being attacked while the officials hide in safe places?” said Mohammad, 63, from Rasht.

“I place the blame on this country’s decision-makers. Their policies have brought war and destruction upon us,” he said by phone.

While Israel has repeatedly targeted both leaders and facilities of the internal security forces under the IRGC, state media has announced hundreds of arrests of people accused of spying.

Black security vehicles were seen on the streets of Tehran on Tuesday and dissidents expressed fear of a coming crackdown by the authorities to ward off any attempt at mass protests.

Accusations of ceasefire violations on Tuesday also raised fears that the war could reignite.

“I hope they (the Israelis) remain committed to the ceasefire. History has shown that they’ve never truly honored it, but I still hope this time they do — because it’s in our interest and theirs as well,” said one man on a Tehran street.

Syria welcomes EU sanctions against former Assad security officials

Updated 41 min 45 sec ago
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Syria welcomes EU sanctions against former Assad security officials

  • The EU has imposed sanctions on Suhail al-Hassan, Ghiyath Dallah, Miqdad Fathiyeh, Mudallal Khoury, Imad Khoury
  • Ministry of Foreign Affairs say they repeatedly assaulted Syrian security personnel, civilians

LONDON: The Syrian Arab Republic has welcomed an EU decision to impose sanctions on former security figures in former dictator Bashar Assad’s regime, which collapsed in December 2024.

Syria’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said the decision reflected a growing acknowledgment of the extent of the violations committed by former figures in the Assad regime against Syrians and their role in fueling violent sectarian events.

The EU has imposed sanctions on Suhail al-Hassan, Ghiyath Dallah, Miqdad Fathiyeh, Mudallal Khoury and Imad Khoury. The ministry said the five were involved in committing serious crimes against Syrians and, in March, played a direct role in fueling sectarian strife in the coastal towns of Banias, Latika and Jableh.

It added they had repeatedly assaulted Syrian security personnel and civilians and attempted to destabilize the coastal areas.

The ministry said a report investigating the coastal events would be submitted to the presidency and those responsible would be held accountable.

“The Syrian government reiterates its commitment to prosecute all those involved in these crimes, wherever they may be, inside or outside the country, to ensure that they are brought to justice and that the victims receive justice,” it said in a statement.


Explosion heard in Damascus, Syrian security forces confirm leftover munitions detonation

Updated 29 min 46 sec ago
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Explosion heard in Damascus, Syrian security forces confirm leftover munitions detonation

  • Residents had heard a loud blast and saw a plume of smoke rising in the western neighborhoods of the city

DAMASCUS: Syrian security forces detonated leftover munitions as part of a training exercise in the capital Damascus on Tuesday, a security source said, creating an explosion that was heard across the city.

The source from Syria’s General Security Service, which is broadly responsible for security matters, told Reuters no-one was wounded in the controlled blast.

Residents had heard a loud blast and saw a plume of smoke rising in the western neighborhoods of the city early on Tuesday evening.


UNRWA chief says cash flow crisis may force him into ‘unprecedented decision’

Updated 24 June 2025
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UNRWA chief says cash flow crisis may force him into ‘unprecedented decision’

  • Philippe Lazzarini said the UNRWA faced a $200 million deficit
  • “Without additional funding I will soon have to take an unprecedented decision affecting our services to Palestinian refugees“

GENEVA: The head of the UN Palestinian refugee agency said on Tuesday he may have to take an “unprecedented decision” about the services it provides if funding is not found soon to ease a cash flow crisis.

Philippe Lazzarini said the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) faced a $200 million deficit.

“Cash flow is managed on a weekly basis,” he told reporters in Berlin. “Without additional funding I will soon have to take an unprecedented decision affecting our services to Palestinian refugees.”

Lazzarini gave no further details of what that decision might entail.

The United States was UNRWA’s biggest donor but President Donald Trump announced broad cuts in foreign aid, including to UNRWA, earlier this year.

Other Western governments’ aid budgets are also under pressure following calls by Trump for more spending on defense as Russia’s war in Ukraine drags on.

UNRWA provides aid, health and education services to millions in the Palestinian territories and neighboring Arab countries of Syria, Lebanon and Jordan.

Lazzarini said that two weeks ago he had been about to suspend 10,000-15,000 UNRWA staff in the region because of the cash flow crisis but an advance contribution from a donor had given the agency respite for the next two months.

“Just to process the payroll of our staff we need $60 million a month. We have no visibility anymore beyond September,” he added.

United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has requested a strategic assessment of the impact of the UNRWA mandate and will propose how the right of Palestinian refugees can be protected, Lazzarini said.

Israel has banned UNRWA from operating on its territory, accusing it of employing members of Palestinian militant group Hamas who took part in the October 2023 attacks on Israel that led to the war in Gaza.

UNRWA said as the ban went into effect this year that operations in the Gaza Strip and West Bank would also suffer.

The UN has said it will investigate all accusations made by Israel and asked Israel for evidence, which it says has not been forthcoming. Lazzarini has said that UNRWA has been the target of a disinformation campaign.


Emirati FM reviews regional crisis with Azerbaijani counterpart

Updated 24 June 2025
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Emirati FM reviews regional crisis with Azerbaijani counterpart

  • Ministers discussed latest developments in the Middle East and their impact on regional security

LONDON: UAE Foreign Minister Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al-Nahyan discussed several regional issues with his Azerbaijani counterpart, Jeyhun Bayramov, during a phone call on Tuesday.

The ministers discussed the latest developments in the Middle East and their impact on regional peace and security. Azerbaijan shares part of its southern border with Iran, which has been locked in conflict with Israel since June 13, before a ceasefire was announced on Tuesday.

Sheikh Abdullah and Bayramov said that enhancing diplomacy and dialogue is crucial for tackling the crisis, and fostering the foundations of enduring security in the region and beyond, the Emirates News Agency reported.

Both parties also discussed opportunities to enhance collaboration across various sectors and strengthen cooperation between Abu Dhabi and Baku, WAM added.