Fate of Turkmen trapped in dungeons of ousted regime in Syria uncertain

By Esref Musa

LATAKIA, Syria (AA) - Following the collapse of the 61-year Baath regime in Syria, the Bayirbucak Turkmens in the Latakia province are still trying to know the fate of over 150 of their relatives who were detained years ago by the regime forces.

Vice president of the Syrian Turkmen Parliament, Mohammad Komurcu, said that the regime forces detained over 150 Bayirbucak Turkmens between 2011 and 2014 in Latakia.

Since the Baath regime collapsed on Dec. 8, only one of these detainees has been released.

The families of the detainees continue to wait for their loved ones to return home.

Anadolu spoke to Turkmen families in Latakia, who have been waiting for years without any news about their missing relatives.

Merve Himeysh, 23, whose father was detained on Aug. 24, 2013, said her father, an imam, was taken by the regime forces outside the mosque under the pretext of being questioned.

She lamented that she had never heard from him again.

Himeysh said that a person released from prison four months later told her that her father was doing well and had sent a message from Sednaya Prison, though that was the last information they received.

Despite her mother's repeated attempts to find out more—going to Damascus and even contacting the Justice Minister—there has been no update on her father's fate or whether he is alive.

She mentioned that a year ago her mother visited Damascus where a soldier told her that his name was not listed among the detainees. But she remained hopeful that her father would return now after the regime had collapsed.

Himeysh said that posts on social media about detainees being released had given them hope.

"In fact, it was even said that my father's name was on the list, and everyone kept calling us to ask about him. We got even more hopeful. We felt the love people had for my father as he was a good man. Everyone loved him, but he didn’t come back,” she added.

Himeysh further said that her younger siblings do not remember their father, and every holiday they spend waiting for his return.

"Even though my mother tries to hide the void, my father’s place can never be filled. Every holiday when we hear his name, pain fills our hearts," she said, expressing the deep longing and emptiness they feel.

- ‘I have my graduation now, and I wish my father could be here’

Emphasizing how difficult it is to grow up without a father, Himeysh said: “Growing up without a father means growing up without support. I’ve always waited for my father’s return. I have my graduation now, and I wish he could be here for it. I waited for him so much at my middle and high school graduations. I wanted him to see our achievements.”

She pointed out that in her father's absence, the responsibility of raising her younger siblings fell on her, and she tried to remain strong for them.

“I kept my emotions hidden so that people around me wouldn’t be affected,” she said.

Himeysh also said that it wasn’t just her family but the entire village that was affected by the absence of her father.

“The villagers miss my father,” she added.

Grieving over her missing father’s fate, she lamented there was no grave for him.

“What they (the Assad regime) made my father go through, I hope they experience it too. The torture sites we see on social media now, we never even imagined them. I hope he (Bashar al-Assad) also gets tortured and dies,” Himeysh said.

- ‘Whoever is at fault should be held accountable’

Raid Molla, the nephew of detainee Cuma Muhammed Molla, who is diabetic, said his uncle was detained at a checkpoint on June 25, 2013, while transporting goods in his truck.

Since that day, Molla said that they have not been able to contact his uncle, though they have received reports suggesting that he was continuously moved from one place to another.

However, they were unable to reach him directly.

Molla stated that they had heard his uncle was last seen in Sednaya Prison and that they were waiting for his release following the collapse of the regime.

He mentioned that his uncle’s four children and the rest of the family had gone to Türkiye, and his cousins had started university.

"Our happiness was incomplete. Only good news from him will make our joy complete," he said.

Molla also highlighted that his cousins had grown up without a father, and they did not even know if their father was alive.

He expressed the family’s desire to learn whether his uncle was alive or not.

Calling for justice, Molla stated: "Whoever is at fault should be held accountable. The children grew up without a father, and there should be consequences for that."

- ‘My husband doesn’t even have a grave’

Abir Kara, whose husband was detained by security forces in March 2013, said that she, along with her two children, has been waiting for her husband’s return for years.

She explained that after her husband left for work, they never heard from him again. Years later, she discovered that her husband had been held in Damascus and went there, but she was unable to get any answers.

"The children know the situation. They always ask why their father was arrested and want to know the reason, and I would struggle to explain it to them. The children grew up with the pain of their father's absence, but now they have grown up, and they are aware of the situation," she said.

Stating that she has tried to remain patient and strong for her children, Kara said: "After the regime’s collapse, we hoped my husband would return, but when we saw the condition of those who were released from prison, we realized how much torture and suffering they had endured. At that moment, I wished my husband had died rather than lived through that pain. If he is dead, he definitely died because of torture. We will never forgive those who made him suffer."

"I want my rights, I want my children’s rights. It’s my right to know where my husband is. Where is he? Is he dead? What happened?” she questioned.

"My children grew up fatherless in poverty for 11 years. They were deprived of many things, they couldn’t experience their childhood. My husband doesn’t even have a grave. We don’t know if he’s dead or alive. They didn’t tell us anything, they didn’t even give us a death certificate or his body. If my children want to visit his grave, where will they go?" she moaned.