What we know about Syria's notorious Saydnaya Prison

Since the illness of the Assad authorities connected Sunday, Syrian civilians hoping for quality of their relatives person been flocking towards the country's astir secretive and notorious prison, Saydnaya.

Established successful the aboriginal 1980s successful a tiny municipality astir 30km northbound of the superior Damascus, Saydnaya is wherever the Assad household has held opponents of their authorities for decades.

Referred to as a "human slaughterhouse" by rights groups, thousands of radical are said to person been detained, tortured and executed astatine the situation since the Syrian civilian warfare began successful 2011.

The layout of Saydnaya has been a intimately guarded concealed and images from wrong the situation person ne'er been seen before.

Details of the prison's layout tin lone beryllium established based connected interviews with erstwhile guards and detainees.

But accusation from rights groups and the US State Department person offered an penetration into the gathering which became a almighty awesome of the Assads' brutal and repressive rule.

Saydnaya was for decades administered by the Syrian subject constabulary and subject intelligence, with operation opening successful the aboriginal 1980s. The archetypal detainees arrived astatine the 1.4 sq km installation successful 1987 - 16 years into the regularisation of President Hafeez al-Assad, Bashar's father.

Once afloat operational the situation contained 2 main detention facilities. The White Building was, according to rights groups, chiefly built to clasp subject officers and troops suspected of being disloyal to the regime. It was an L-shaped analyzable successful the south-east of the sprawling complex.

The Red Building - the main situation - was for opponents of the regime, initially comprising those suspected of rank of Islamist groups. This helping was noted for its distinctive Y-shape, with 3 consecutive corridors spreading retired from a cardinal hub.

Around 10,000-20,000 radical could beryllium housed betwixt the 2 buildings, according to rights groups that person spoken to released prisoners. Videos circulating online since Sunday - which person been authenticated by BBC Verify - showed a ample surveillance country successful the situation filled with CCTV screens showing what appeared to beryllium dozens of situation cells.

A 2017 study by Amnesty International citing ex-guards astatine the situation recovered that aft the Syrian civilian warfare began successful 2011 the White Building was emptied of existing prisoners, and prepared alternatively to location those detained for taking portion successful protests opposing President Bashar al-Assad's regime.

One erstwhile serviceman told Amnesty that "after 2011, [Saydnaya] became the main governmental situation successful Syria".

The organisation besides quoted grounds from erstwhile prisoners claiming that those held successful the Red Building were often exposed to assorted methods of torture, including terrible beatings, rape and denial of entree to nutrient and medicine.

Housed beneath the White Building is what those speaking to Amnesty called an "execution room", wherever detainees successful the Red Building would beryllium transported to beryllium hanged.

A erstwhile defender said that a database of those to beryllium executed from the Red Building would get astatine lunchtime. Troops would past instrumentality those marked for decease to a basement holding compartment - which could sometimes incorporate up to 100 radical - wherever they were subjected to beatings.

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Prisoners who spoke to Amnesty said detainees successful the Red Building were typically "transferred" from the gathering successful the dormant of nighttime - usually betwixt midnight and 03:00.

Blindfolded detainees were past led down a formation of stairs into the "execution room" successful the south-east conception of the White Building, earlier being led up onto a 1 metre-high level with 10 nooses from which they were hanged.

According to Amnesty, successful 2012 the country was expanded, with a 2nd level with 20 much nooses. In footage shared by rebel-affiliated media aft the autumn of the regime, fighters displayed dozens of nooses they recovered successful rooms astir Saydnaya.

It is estimated by rights groups that much than 30,000 detainees had either been executed oregon died arsenic a effect of torture, deficiency of aesculapian attraction oregon starvation betwixt 2011 and 2018. Citing accounts from the fewer released inmates, astatine slightest different 500 detainees had been executed betwixt 2018 and 2021, the Association of the Missing and Detainees successful Saydnaya Prison (AMDSP) said successful 2022.

In 2017, the US State Department claimed that authorities had constructed a imaginable crematorium connected the tract to dispose of the remains of murdered prisoners. In the images below, a tiny helping tin beryllium seen adjoining the White Building.

A State Department spokesperson said officials had built the installation arsenic portion of "an effort to screen up the grade of wide murders taking spot successful Saydnaya prison".

Satellite images released by US investigators showed a operation which they said was a tiny gathering converted into a crematorium. Officials said snowfall melt connected the extortion of the gathering helped to backmost up their claims - adding that astatine slightest 50 prisoners a time were being hanged astatine the installation astatine the time.

Throughout its history, the installation was heavy guarded, with fortifications surrounding the grounds.

The exterior of the situation was patrolled by a detachment of 200 troops from the military, with an further 250 soldiers from subject quality and the subject constabulary liable for interior security, according to the 2022 study from AMDSP.

Troops from the 21st Brigade of the army's Third Division were chosen to support the situation due to the fact that of their beardown loyalty to the regime. Soldiers were commanded by officers from President Bashar al-Assad's Alawite minority.

Since the downfall of the Assad regime, civilians person been urged to debar rushing done the perimeter of the prison. Rights groups accidental the exterior of the analyzable is known to beryllium heavy mined. A ringing of anti-tank munitions runs astir the exterior of the prison, with a secondary ringing of anti-personnel mines moving done the centre of the facility.

Images released by the White Helmets - a Syrian civilian defence radical - showed precocious walls topped with barbed ligament besides surrounding the complex. Guard towers tin besides beryllium seen dotted astir the facility.

The Assad authorities ever denied the accusations levelled against it by planetary organisation, calling them "baseless" and "devoid of truth".

Amnesty says for families who fishy their relatives person been held successful Saydnaya the autumn of the authorities "raises the imaginable that they could yet observe the destiny of their missing loved ones, successful immoderate cases decades later".