OHCHR / SYRIA ENFORCED DISAPPEARANCES

“Eleven months after the fall of the former government in Syria, we continue to receive worrying reports about dozens of abductions and enforced disappearances, in addition to the more than 100,000 people who went missing under the Assad regime,” said UN Human Rights spokesperson Thameen Al-Kheetan. OHCHR / UNTV CH

Description

STORY: OHCHR / SYRIA ENFORCED DISAPPEARANCES
TRT: 2:22
SOURCE: OHCHR / UNTV CH
RESTRICTIONS: NONE
LANGUAGE: ENGLISH / NATS

DATELINE: 07 NOVEMBER 2025, GENEVA, SWITZERLAND

Shotlist

1. Exterior shot, United Nations
2. Wide shot, press briefing room
3. SOUNDBITE (English) Thameen Al-Kheetan, Spokesperson for the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR):
“Eleven months after the fall of the former government in Syria, we continue to receive worrying reports about dozens of abductions and enforced disappearances, in addition to the more than 100,000 people who went missing under the Assad regime.”
4. Wide shot, press briefing room
5. SOUNDBITE (English) Thameen Al-Kheetan, Spokesperson for the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR):
“Since the fall of Assad, some families have been reunited with their loved ones, while many still live with the distress of not knowing where they are, or what happened to them. The fate and whereabouts of all those who have gone missing, both before and after the fall of the former government, must urgently be clarified.”
6. Wide shot, press briefing room
7. SOUNDBITE (English) Thameen Al-Kheetan, Spokesperson for the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR):
“One recent emblematic case is the disappearance of Syria Civil Defense volunteer Hamza Al-Amarin, who went missing on 16 July 2025 while supporting a humanitarian evacuation mission during violence in Suweida. He remains unaccounted for.”
8. Wide shot, press briefing room
9. SOUNDBITE (English) Thameen Al-Kheetan, Spokesperson for the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR):
“We stress that all armed actors – both exercising State power and otherwise – must respect and protect humanitarian workers at all times, everywhere, as required by international human rights law and applicable humanitarian law.”
10. Wide shot, press briefing room
11. SOUNDBITE (English) Thameen Al-Kheetan, Spokesperson for the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR):
“Accountability and justice for all human rights violations and abuses, past and present, are essential for Syria to build a durable, peaceful and secure future for all its people.”

Storyline

The UN Human Rights Office on Friday (7 Nov) highlighted the ongoing issue of abductions and enforced disappearances in Syria.

“Eleven months after the fall of the former government in Syria, we continue to receive worrying reports about dozens of abductions and enforced disappearances, in addition to the more than 100,000 people who went missing under the Assad regime,” said UN Human Rights spokesperson Thameen Al-Kheetan.

“Since the fall of Assad, some families have been reunited with their loved ones, while many still live with the distress of not knowing where they are, or what happened to them. The fate and whereabouts of all those who have gone missing, both before and after the fall of the former government, must urgently be clarified,” Al-Kheetan told the biweekly press briefing in Geneva.

In this regard, the UN Human Rights Office supports the work of the Independent Institution on Missing Persons in the Syrian Arab Republic (IIMP), he added.

“One recent emblematic case is the disappearance of Syria Civil Defense volunteer Hamza Al-Amarin, who went missing on 16 July 2025 while supporting a humanitarian evacuation mission during violence in Suweida. He remains unaccounted for,” the spokesperson said.

“We stress that all armed actors – both exercising State power and otherwise – must respect and protect humanitarian workers at all times, everywhere, as required by international human rights law and applicable humanitarian law,” Al-Kheetan said.

“Accountability and justice for all human rights violations and abuses, past and present, are essential for Syria to build a durable, peaceful and secure future for all its people,” he concluded.

For more information and media requests, please contact
Thameen Al-Kheetan - + [phone] / [e-mail]
Jeremy Laurence - + 41 22 917 9383 / [e-mail]

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• Production Date: 7 November 2025
• Creator: UNTV CH / OHCHR
• Alternate Title: unifeed251107f
• Subject Topical: HUMAN RIGHTS
• Geographic Subject: SYRIA
• Corporate Name: OFFICE OF THE UNITED NATIONS HIGH COMMISSIONER FOR HUMAN RIGHTS - OHCHR
• MAMS Id: 3493850
• Parent Id: 3493850