Freed Syrians return to prison of torture and death

“Nothing lasts forever.” These words echo from the walls of a Damascus prison, once a place of terror and torture. Today, two survivors stand inside, reliving the unthinkable.

Basim Faiz Mawat, 48, walks into the cell where his dignity was torn apart. For years, this space was known as the “death dormitory.” His voice shakes as he speaks of his suffering.

“Here I was blindfolded, arms tied behind me. They kicked the ladder, and I dangled. My shoulders were torn. No one could endure more than ten minutes,” says Mawat, pointing to the rusty ladder in the corner.

The prison, now abandoned after the fall of Bashar al-Assad’s governance

, holds the names of prisoners scratched into its walls – silent witnesses to their fate.

Mohammed Hanania, 35, remembers it too well.

“One to three people died every day in this room. If not from weakness, the guards would kill them,” he recounts, looking at the cold ground where prisoners slept.

Both men stand outside the detention centre, staring at a fading image of Assad on the wall. The President who oversaw these atrocities has fled to Russia. Inside, blankets and rubble remain. Outside, families search for loved ones – some freed, others lost forever.

“At this stage, if everyone thinks about revenge, we have no solution but to forgive,” Hanania says. “But the criminals must be held accountable.”

Syrians now face a painful reckoning as they sift through memories of a governance that ruled with terror for five decades. The prison doors have opened, but its shadows remain.

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Middle East