Obeida Dabbagh spoke at the UN about the anguish faced by families of victims of the Assad regime’s enforced disappearances during the Syrian civil war. His brother and nephew were tortured and declared dead years after their disappearance. Efforts to seek justice have led to legal actions in France, resulting in indictments and life sentences for regime officials. The article emphasizes the need for accountability and preservation of evidence to support victims’ rights.
A relative of two Syrians tortured and killed by the Assad regime, Obeida Dabbagh, has shared the pain from their enforced disappearance during Syria’s civil war. His brother Mazen and nephew Patrick were arrested by Air Force Intelligence in November 2013 and declared dead in 2018, years after their disappearance. Mr. Dabbagh addressed the UN Committee on Enforced Disappearances, emphasizing that they were not involved in the protests against President Bashar al-Assad, which the regime brutally suppressed through mass arrests and torture.
Mr. Dabbagh revealed that, during their captivity, the regime extorted money from the family, promising information in exchange for exorbitant sums. He also reported that the family faced further hardships when Mazen’s wife and daughter were expelled from their home in Damascus. His statements highlighted the extensive abuse and corruption involving the Syrian regime towards the families of victims.
He affirmed, “This fight goes beyond my family; it is part of a universal quest for justice and against impunity for war crimes.” He pursued legal action not only to seek justice for his relatives but also to contribute to the global effort to address the atrocities committed by the Syrian government.
Before their arrests, Mazen served as a teaching assistant at a French college, and Patrick was a psychology student at Damascus University. Desperate for their release, the family sought help from Syrian, French, and international authorities, even approaching the Red Cross and the European Union. They eventually filed a complaint with the Paris Prosecutor’s office in 2016, alongside the NGO International Federation for Human Rights, leading to proceedings for crimes against humanity.
This initiative sparked a French investigation, which collected significant testimonies from Syrian deserters. As a result, three senior Syrian regime officials were indicted in March 2023 for their roles in war crimes. Following a trial in absentia in France last May, Ali Mamlouk, Jamil Hassan, and Abdel Salam Mahmoud received life sentences for complicity in torture, enforced disappearance, and murder.
The Committee on Enforced Disappearances oversees the implementation of the International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance. Adopted by the UN in 2006, the convention obligates signatory countries to search for disappeared individuals and prosecute offenders. Independent rights expert Fidelis Kanyongolo noted that although many states have yet to ratify this convention, its principles are essential in combating enforced disappearances, especially since Syria has not ratified the Rome Statute for ICC jurisdiction.
The International Convention is a significant legally binding human rights instrument addressing enforced disappearances and reflects customary international law principles. On the anniversary of the Syrian civil war’s start, the UN Human Rights Council called for accountability, emphasizing the need to preserve evidence from prisons and mass grave sites to support future truth and accountability endeavors led by Syrian civil society and other actors.
Obeida Dabbagh’s testimony highlights the extensive human rights abuses experienced by victims of the Assad regime in Syria. His pursuit of justice for his family through legal actions underscores the broader fight against impunity for war crimes. The efforts to prosecute senior officials reflect a significant step towards accountability, while the ongoing need for international support and adherence to human rights conventions remains critical in the pursuit of justice for all victims in Syria. The International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance plays a vital role in preventing such crimes and advocating for the rights of victims’ families, while calls for the preservation of evidence emphasize the importance of accountability in the aftermath of the conflict.
Original Source: news.un.org
