People recently freed from the grip of ISIS struggle to heal while striving to rebuild, but the silent anguish of those whose loved ones are still missing continues to torment them. As hope of reuniting with family members who disappeared at the hands of ISIS dwindles, people seek closure in receiving any kind of news regarding their unknown fate. Exhausted and drained by speculations and rumors, families seek the truth.
A report by the Human Rights Watch published in February focused on the importance of addressing what happened to people who disappeared in the custody of ISIS. Cases of individuals or groups apprehended by ISIS and last heard of in its custody before the group’s military defeat include activists, aid workers, journalists, and anti-ISIS fighters from a range of groups, government and anti-government, as well as residents living under ISIS control. While the number of missing is uncertain, the Syrian Network for Human Rights has documented 8,143 cases of people detained by ISIS whose fate remains unknown.
“The numerous crimes of ISIS include kidnapping and disappearing thousands of activists, journalists, and humanitarian workers as well as adversaries,” said Joe Stork, deputy Middle East director at Human Rights Watch. “Their families’ anguish is only compounded by the failure of the authorities to prioritize uncovering information about what happened to them, almost a year after ISIS’s defeat.”
Families of those missing told Human Rights Watch that they had hoped that the defeat would quickly lead to information about their loved ones, but authorities have failed to prioritize obtaining or disclosing information to families in most cases. Family members described their anguish at fruitlessly pursuing rumors while receiving promises of information in exchange for payments to dubious intermediaries, and visiting former detention centers in hopes of finding clues about their missing relatives.
