I will never forget that fateful moment when I was just 11 years old, walking back home from school with my friend. Unfortunately, our return coincided with a military convoy of the Syrian regime. A barrage of bullets rained down upon us, with the clear intention of taking our lives. We managed to survive by hiding in an abandoned room along the road. As a child, I was consumed by the question: what threat do I pose to Bashar al-Assad and his army that they would seek to kill me? Do wars not have ethics that protect children?

The war raged on for over a decade, and as I grew up, transitioning from a curious child into a dedicated researcher and doctor, the stark reality became painfully clear: Assad's sadism and his relentless crimes against humanity, nature, and the very stones of Syria. In 2013, the siege on my city, Al-Nabk, by the Syrian regime's forces intensified, using every weapon at their disposal against defenceless civilians, including the weapon of hunger, which ultimately led to forced displacement of myself and my family.1To say that facing death would have been easier for me than saying goodbye to my home, the familiar walls, stairs, and cherished memories—possibly forever—is not an exaggeration.

The series of tragedies did not stop there, as a few months later, my civilian father was arrested by the regime's forces. In Syria, you quickly learn that death by missile, chemical weapons, or barrel bombs is a far more merciful fate than enduring the horrors of Assad's prisons, such as Saydnaya. Until Assad's escape, the Syrian Network for Human Rights documented the killing of nearly a quarter of a million people by Assad's regime. Additionally, 96 321 cases of enforced disappearance were reported, with the bodies likely disposed of through burning, burial in mass graves, or body presses in Assad's prisons between 2011 and 2024.2

These gruesome facilities were not reserved for criminals or perpetrators of civilian massacres, but were dedicated to the innocent and those who dared to resist Assad's oppressive regime. By a stroke of luck, my father was released from prison after a month. In 2025, as a doctor, I feel compelled to remind the world, especially fellow doctors, about the disappearance of Dr Rania Al-Abbasi, her husband, and their six children, who were forcibly taken into Assad's prisons in 2013 and remain unaccounted for to this day.3We implore the international communities to investigate the cases of detained children. As Syrian doctors, we hold hope that we might at least find Dr Rania's children, who were aged between 2 years and 14 years at the time of their arrest. The children having grown up and now being among us is conceivable. Where have her six children vanished to? Were they stripped of their identities and sent abroad? Or were their organs harvested and sold, as happened to many other detained children?

The harrowing experiences of the Syrian people, including the relentless siege and the enforced disappearances, underscore the urgent need for international intervention and support. As a Syrian doctor who has witnessed and endured the devastating impact of war, I call upon the global medical community to take immediate action. This action includes providing medical aid, sending medical teams, and training local doctors to address the dire health-care needs in Syria. The international community must also investigate the cases of detained children, such as Dr Rania's six children, who remain unaccounted for. Lifting all economic sanctions imposed on Syria is imperative to allow its people to experience freedom and the long-awaited liberty they have yearned for amid years of unyielding oppression. Together, we can make a difference and bring hope to a nation in desperate need.

Author: Hamdah Hanifa, Faculty of Medicine, University of Kalamoon, Al-Nabk, Syria.

Source: The Lancet 

References

1. Syrian Network for Human Rights Bombardment, killing, siege and storming Al Nabak city by government forces and its pro militias https://snhr.org/blog/2013/12/28/13507/ Date: Dec 28, 2013 Date accessed: February 10, 2025
2. Syrian Network for Human Rights Summary of the Assad regime's crimes against the Syrian people over the last 14 years https://snhr.org/blog/2024/12/20/summary-of-the-assad-regimes-crimes-against-the-syrian-people-over-the-last-14-years/ Date: Dec 20, 2024 Date accessed: February 13, 2025
3. Sooz, J Behind the ‘vanishing' of a Syrian chess champ and her children in Assad jails https://english.alarabiya.net/features/2018/12/31/Behind-the-vanishing-of-a-Syrian-chess-champ-and-her-children-in-Assad-jails Date: Dec 31, 2018 Date accessed: February 13, 2025 Google Scholar