Rescuers end search for secret cells in Saydnaya military prison

Syrian rebel fighters accidental they person recovered astir 40 bodies showing signs of torture successful the mortuary of a subject infirmary successful a suburb of Damascus pursuing the overthrow of President Bashar al-Assad.

Video and photos showed bodies wrapped successful blood-stained achromatic shrouds piled up wrong a refrigerated country astatine Harasta Hospital connected Monday.

Several of the bodies appeared to person wounds and bruising connected their faces and torsos. Pieces of adhesive portion bearing numbers and names were besides visible.

"I opened the doorway of the mortuary with my ain hands, it was a horrific sight," Mohammed al-Hajj, a subordinate of a rebel radical from confederate Syria, told AFP quality agency.

He said the rebels had gone to infirmary aft receiving a extremity from a subordinate of unit astir bodies being dumped there.

"We informed the [rebel] subject bid of what we recovered and co-ordinated with the Syrian Red Crescent, which transported the bodies to a Damascus infirmary truthful that families tin travel and place them."

It was not wide however agelong the bodies had been stored astatine the mortuary, but they were astatine assorted stages of decomposition.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a UK-based monitoring group, says astir 60,000 radical were tortured and killed successful the Assad government's prisons.

Human rights groups accidental much than 100,000 radical person disappeared since Assad ordered a brutal crackdown connected pro-democracy protests successful 2011 that triggered the civilian war.

A Syrian non-governmental organisation said it was apt that the bodies successful Harasta were detainees from the notorious Saydnaya prison, which is conscionable to the northbound of Damascus.

"Harasta Hospital served arsenic the main centre for collecting the bodies of detainees," Diab Serriya, a co-founder of the Association of Detainees and the Missing successful Sednaya Prison (ADMSP), told AFP.

"Bodies would beryllium sent determination from Saydnaya situation oregon Tishrin Hospital, and from Harasta, they would beryllium transferred to wide graves," helium added.

The find of the bodies came arsenic the Syria Civil Defence, whose rescue workers are wide known arsenic the White Helmets, announced that it had concluded a hunt cognition for imaginable detainees successful concealed cells oregon basements astatine Saydnaya situation without uncovering anyone.

Five specialised teams assisted by 2 K9 canine units and individuals acquainted with the layout of the situation checked each buildings, basements, courtyards, ventilation shafts, sewage systems, surveillance camera cables and surrounding areas connected Monday, arsenic crowds gathered determination successful the anticipation of uncovering their missing relatives.

"The hunt did not uncover immoderate unopened oregon hidden areas wrong the facility," the Syria Civil Defence said.

"We stock the profound disappointment of the families of the thousands who stay missing and whose fates stay unknown," it added.

The ADMSP meantime shared what it said was an authoritative document, dated 28 October, saying that 4,300 detainees were being held astatine Saydnaya.

They comprised 2,817 judicial detainees held successful the prison's "White Building" and 1,483 detainees held connected charges related to coercion and subject tribunals successful the "Red Building".

"This approximate fig represents the detainees who were released astatine the clip of the prison's liberation," the ADMSP said. The BBC could not instantly verify the information.

Rebel fighters entered Saydnaya situation and Harasta infirmary arsenic they precocious into Damascus implicit the weekend, prompting President Bashar al-Assad to measurement down and fly the country.

The ADMSP said successful a 2022 study that Saydnaya "effectively became a decease camp" aft the commencement of Syria's civilian warfare successful 2011.

It estimated that much than 30,000 detainees had either been executed oregon died arsenic a effect of torture, deficiency of aesculapian attraction oregon starvation astatine the installation betwixt 2011 and 2018.

It besides cited released inmates arsenic saying that astatine slightest different 500 detainees had been executed betwixt 2018 and 2021.

ADMSP besides described however "salt chambers" were constructed to service arsenic primitive mortuaries to store bodies earlier they were transferred to Tishreen Hospital for registration and burial successful graves connected subject land.

Amnesty International utilized the operation "human slaughterhouse" to picture Saydnaya and alleged that the executions had been authorised astatine the highest levels of the Assad government, and that specified practices amounted to warfare crimes and crimes against humanity.

The Assad authorities dismissed Amnesty's claims arsenic "baseless" and "devoid of truth", insisting that each executions successful Syria followed owed process.

On Monday night, the person of the Islamist militant radical whose violative led to the extremity of Assad's 24-year regularisation said erstwhile elder officials who oversaw the torture of governmental prisoners would beryllium held accountable.

Abu Mohammed al-Jolani of Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) said the officials' names would beryllium published and repatriation sought for those who had fled abroad. Rewards would besides beryllium offered to anyone who provided accusation astir their whereabouts, helium added.