ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Syrians who had been kept in the infamous Sednaya prison in the capital city of Damascus for their political views are celebrating their freedom after years of torture under Bashar al-Assad's regime which fell on Sunday following a surprise offensive by rebels.
Rudaw’s cameras inside Syria's notorious Sednaya prison captured workers, including members of the White Helmets, digging through walls and the ground. This followed social media rumors suggesting that more inmates might be hidden in the “red” section of the prison.
Syria’s civil war dramatically reignited late last month when a coalition of rebels led by the jihadist Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) launched a blistering offensive against the Syrian army, seizing the northern city of Aleppo, Hama, Homs, and culminating their victory by capturing the capital Damascus as rebels said Assad fled the country, ending over five decades of Baathist rule.
Celebrations across Syria, sparked by the fall of the regime, were abruptly halted as chilling stories about the inmates of the Sednaya prison in the Damascus suburbs began to emerge. These stories provide a disturbing look into how the Assad family brutally treated prisoners during their decades-long rule.
Sednaya has become a symbol of the regime's brutal repression, notorious for torture, sexual assault, and mass executions.
People from across Syria have traveled to Sednaya, hoping to find traces of loved ones arrested during anti-government protests throughout the 14-year Syrian civil war.
“I came looking for my brother, who has been missing since 2018. We’ve tried everything to find him, but there are still no signs,” said one woman.
Rekar Aziz contributed to this article.
