DodoFinance Breaking News Made For You!
A Dutch citizen was tortured by the regime of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. The Arnhem man was detained for at least four years and is believed to have died. This emerges from the testimonies of former cellmates and information from the Red Cross and the Syrian regime. NRC†
The Arnhemmer disappeared in Lebanon in May 2013. A year later, he found himself in a Syrian cell. The Assad regime suspected him of espionage and contacts with terrorists, among others, and brutally tortured him. “He was shouting so loudly that the guards were sometimes ordered to stop,” a former cellmate told the newspaper.
According to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, NRC was informed at the time, but did not intervene. The Netherlands has not had diplomatic relations with the Assad regime since 2012 and did not use the option to help the citizen of Arnhem through the Romanian Embassy in Damascus.
“Carried out of the cell unconscious”
Two former cellmates told the newspaper that after four years of torture, the man was taken out of the cell unconscious in mid-2018. He was then transferred one last time and died in custody, a senior Syrian regime officer said. NRC†
The Arnhemmer would thus be the first known case of a Dutch citizen tortured by the Assad regime. The Dutch nationality of the victim now increases the chances that the prosecution can open an investigation against his torturers, even if they are still in Syria.
The Foreign Office also hopes to include the case in Dutch responsibility for Syria for torture. This procedure could lead to a case before the International Court of Justice in The Hague.
The man, born in 1983, had Moroccan parents and grew up in the Arnhem district of Malburgen. He reportedly studied Arabic at Radboud University in Nijmegen and worked in the health sector.
Free and unlimited access to Showbytes? That can!
Log in or create an account and don’t miss a thing from the stars.
“Infuriatingly humble social media ninja. Devoted travel junkie. Student. Avid internet lover.”