Damascus – May 12, 2025
The Syrian Network for Human Rights (SNHR) today released a statement revealing the killing or enforced disappearance of at least eleven American citizens between the beginning of the armed conflict in Syria in March 2011 and May 2025.
According to the statement, which was based on SNHR’s database and systematic monitoring by its team, SNHR documented the deaths of six civilians holding American citizenship, including one woman. Responsibility for these cases was divided between Bashar al-Assad’s regime forces (three civilians, including a woman who died under torture and a journalist) and ISIS (three civilians, including two journalists and a medical/aid worker).
The report also documented five cases of enforced disappearance of American citizens, including a woman, who remain missing. Assad regime forces bear responsibility for four of these cases, while the fifth is attributed to other parties.
The report asserted that targeting civilians, including American citizens, constitutes a flagrant violation of the principles of international humanitarian law, particularly the principles of distinction and proportionality in armed conflict. It also emphasized that the crime of enforced disappearance is a continuing crime under the law, and legal responsibility remains in place until the fate of the victims is revealed.
The statement presented a set of recommendations, most notably:
Calling on the UN Security Council to Impose targeted sanctions on individuals involved in serious violations, primarily the Assad regime’s security and military leaders.
Calling on the international community to Provide technical and financial support to human rights organizations documenting human rights violations in Syria.
Calling on the US Government to Intensify search and investigation efforts into the cases of American citizens killed or forcibly disappeared in Syria, and provide legal, material, and moral support to the families of the victims.
