Syria’s Deir ez-Zor prison, where thousands were tortured, is now in ruins

Anadolu has captured footage of wards and cells inside the Deir ez-Zor Central Prison, a notorious detention facility in eastern Syria where thousands, including women and children, were subjected to brutal torture during the Baath regime. The prison, appearing abandoned from the outside, concealed a grim reality until the collapse of the regime weeks ago. Once a center of oppression, it held detainees in inhumane conditions for years. Speaking to Anadolu after his release, Basil Kuweihi, who was detained there for 88 days, detailed the horrors, including elderly detainees being dragged along corridors and forced to endure tear gas exposure. 'Until the last day, internal security forces stormed in, beat us, and used tear gas,' Kuweihi said. He said guardians made them kneel for hours and denied them access to toilets for long periods of time. 'One day, when we revolted uprising, a young man was shot in the head by a sniper in this courtyard,' he added. Demanding accountability, the ex-prisoner said the regime was 'very cruel and despotic.' 'All elements of the regime must be held to account. Not just the top names, but everyone who mistreated people must be held to account' he said. The walls of the prison bear graffiti such as 'Destruction, darkness, death,' reflecting its grim legacy. The prison, where symbols of the Baath regime can be found in every corner, has been seen to have turned into a garbage dump. Burnt bunk beds, soot-covered walls, and cells and wards that have turned into garbage are noteworthy in the prison, which has rotten police vehicles in the courtyard. Following the Baath regime's fall on Dec. 8, those held in Deir ez-Zor Central Prison were freed. The site now stands as a haunting testament to the regime's cruelty, with calls for justice echoing among survivors.