On 10 August 2015, Mazen Darwish, Director of the Syrian Centre for Media and Freedom of Expression (SCM), was freed from State Security Branch No. 285, after three years spent behind bars, following numerous calls by various UN instances, Alkarama and numerous other organisations. He is joining his two colleagues Hussein Gharir and Hani Al Zitani, who were released in late July.
"We are extremely happy to hear that now, Darwish, Hussein and Hani are all free and reunited with their family," says Inès Osman, Legal Officer for the Mashreq at Alkarama. "However, legal proceedings against the three men are still ongoing, and the verdict should be pronounced on 31 August. We are hoping to see all these trumped-up charges dropped."
On 16 February 2012, the Syrian Air Force Intelligence, affiliated to the Ministry of Defence, raided the SCM – a non-governmental organisation disseminating information on the human rights situation in Syria including on media freedom and freedom of expression – and arrested its staff. While most of them were released, SCM's Director Mazen Darwish and his two colleagues, Hani Al Zitani and Hussein Gharir, were kept in detention. All three men were held in incommunicado detention until November 2012. In February 2013, a year after their arrest, they were charged with "publicising terrorist acts" by the Anti-Terrorism Court. Although a presidential amnesty was issued on 9 June 2014 pardoning all individuals charged with "promoting terrorist acts," Darwish, Gharir and Al Zitani were excluded from the pardon.
Unexpectedly, on 17 and 18 July 2015, Hussein Gharir and Hani Al Zitani were released from Hama prison after the administration received a list of the individuals who were granted the amnesty. Although Mazen Darwish's name was included on the list, the authorities decided to carry out a "security check" and transferred him to State Security Branch No. 285, a Damascus-based subsidiary of State Security Department affiliated to the Ministry of Interior, from where he was released on 10 August 2015.
Today, it is still unclear why Mazen was transferred and legal proceedings against Darwish, Hussein and Hani are still pending. According to Darwish's wife, Yara Bader, "he has been freed ahead of a final verdict in his case on 31 August." Therefore, despite the amnesty decree, judicial proceedings against the three human rights defenders are still pending.
Alkarama therefore calls upon the Syrian authorities to drop all charges held against Mazen, Hussein and Hani. The Government must act upon the repeated calls for the three activists' freedom from the UN Commission of Inquiry on Syria on 11 March 2013, the UN General Assembly on 15 May 2013, the UN Special Procedures on 15 November 2013, the UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon on 24 August 2014, dozens of human rights organisations on 17 May 2013, 19 November 2013 and again on 16 February 2015, and the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Zeid Ra'ad Al Hussein on 19 February 2015.
For more information or an interview, please contact the media team at media@alkarama.org (Dir: +41 22 734 1008).