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Damascus – September 2025
The Syrian Network for Human Rights (SNHR) participated in the “Media and Communication Future Forum 2025,” held in the Jordanian capital, Amman, under the theme “Challenges of Reality and Stakes of the Future.” The two-day event was represented by its Executive Director, Mr. Fadel Abdulghany, who spoke at a session titled “Syria and Questions of the Future: Challenges, Stakes, and Success Stories.”
Mr. Abdulghany addressed the transitional justice process in Syria and the challenges and difficulties of the current phase, emphasizing that the transitional phase represents a historic turning point that requires a transition to a new phase that addresses the heavy legacy of gross human rights violations and consolidates the principles of justice and civil peace. He explained that transitional justice represents the optimal approach for achieving comprehensive recovery from the effects of the conflict, building solid foundations for a state based on the rule of law, respect for human rights, and promoting national reconciliation to ensure lasting stability.
Documenting Violations and the Network’s Role
He explained that the Syrian Network for Human Rights (SNHR) has, since 2011, documented violations on a daily and systematic basis. It has established a comprehensive database containing millions of incidents and issued more than 1,800 reports and statements covering all phases of the conflict. These publications documented the most significant human and material losses that have left profound impacts on Syrian society and the state over the past fourteen years, including extrajudicial killings, enforced disappearances, deaths due to torture, the use of destructive weapons, and forced displacement. He also pointed out that the network’s statistics reveal a massive scale of suffering: 231,000 civilians were killed during the conflict, the majority (202,000) at the hands of regime forces, in addition to 157,000 arbitrarily detained and forcibly disappeared persons, and 15,393 people who died under torture. The tragedy is not limited to these numbers, but extends to include the internal and external displacement of approximately 13.8 million Syrians, the systematic destruction of infrastructure, and the deliberate distortion of the social fabric.
In his remarks, he emphasized that establishing transitional justice within a clear constitutional framework constitutes an essential step toward legitimizing the mechanisms designed to address the legacy of gross human rights violations in Syria.
The forum’s activities were attended by more than 750 participants, including journalists, activists, content creators, and experts, as well as representatives of international and media institutions from around the world. The forum featured 33 dialogue sessions, with the participation of 98 local and international figures. Syria was this year’s guest of honor.
