For nearly four decades, Moammar Ali has relentlessly pursued the truth about his older brother, Ali Hassan al-Ali, who vanished in 1986. An 18-year-old university student at the time, Ali Hassan was detained at a checkpoint in northern Lebanon by Syrian soldiers. Since then, his family has endured agonizing uncertainty, a void of information only recently pierced by a sliver of hope.
The story begins in 1986, a year that marked the beginning of Moammar’s decades-long quest. The Guardian reported on Moammar’s unwavering dedication, recounting his tireless efforts to uncover his brother’s fate. He crisscrossed Syria, visiting every security branch imaginable, searching for answers amidst conflicting reports. Some suggested Ali Hassan was imprisoned; others denied any knowledge of his existence. Years bled into decades, with Moammar consistently facing contradictory information, a relentless cycle of hope and despair.
The last credible lead pointed towards Ali Hassan’s detention in a Damascus military security branch, accused of political agitation. However, the eruption of the Syrian Civil War and the uprising against President Bashar al-Assad brought this search to a standstill, leaving Moammar in a state of agonizing silence for years.
A Thursday night changed everything. A wave of messages flooded Moammar’s devices, accompanied by a grainy photograph. The image depicted a disoriented man in his late 50s, standing outside Hama Central Prison. The resemblance was striking. “They said he resembled me. I told them: ‘this is my brother!’ The feeling… it’s indescribable,” Moammar shared, his voice thick with emotion. “Imagine not seeing him for 39 years, and then suddenly, his picture appears. How would you feel?”
Ali Hassan, once a young man, emerged from prison at 57, a stark testament to the passage of time and the brutal conditions he endured. His release wasn’t an isolated incident but part of a broader trend. The Islamist group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) made significant territorial gains in northern Syria, leading to the release of numerous prisoners held by the Syrian government. Areas previously under government control, including parts of Aleppo and Hama, fell under rebel control, causing a wave of prisoner releases.
A former detainee, speaking anonymously, explained that many families received similar grainy images via social media platforms like WhatsApp, triggering a frantic effort to identify their loved ones among those freed. Jinan, a Lebanese woman whose father was arrested in 2006 after seeking refuge in Syria, described the emotional turmoil this created. “You can’t imagine how it was yesterday; a lot of friends contacted me to ask about my father,” she said, clinging to the hope that her father remains alive.
This wave of releases shines a spotlight on Syria’s notorious prison system, a “kingdom of silence” where an estimated 136,000 individuals remain detained. These prisons, security branches, and detention centers are notorious for brutal repression, particularly since the 2011 uprising. The Syrian government’s systematic abuse of human rights, including widespread torture, is well documented by rights groups, adding another layer of complexity and horror to the stories of those who’ve been unjustly imprisoned for years.
Moammar’s story, though marked by profound loss and years of uncertainty, offers a powerful reminder of the resilience of the human spirit and the enduring hope that can survive even the most oppressive circumstances. The ongoing struggle for justice and accountability in Syria remains paramount, as countless other families continue their searches for loved ones lost within the labyrinthine confines of the country’s infamous prison system.
