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After 13 years and five months in the prisons of the deposed regime of Bashar al-Assad, Hamdo Abdul Hakim Suleiman, from the city of Kafranbel in southern Idlib province, was freed by rebel fighters on 6 December 2024 from Suweida Central Prison in southern Syria.

He told ������'s Arabic sister edition that during those long years, he suffered numerous forms of torture designed to force false confessions. He also recounted witnessing mass executions at the notorious Saydnaya Prison and described the brutal torture methods employed in the security branches of Damascus.

Speaking to��Al-Araby Al-Jadeed, Suleiman said: “I was arrested by Assad’s forces on 7 July 2011 at a military security checkpoint in Kafranbel. I was initially taken to a carpet factory in the city, which had been turned into a military barracks at the time, then transferred to the military security branch in Idlib city. From there, I was moved to Branch 291 in the security square of Kafr Sousa in Damascus, followed by Branch 235 (the Palestine Branch), and finally to Branch 48 in Damascus.”

Suleiman explained that no investigation was conducted in the Palestine Branch, but interrogations took place in the military security branch in Idlib and Branch 291. After spending two months being shuffled between branches, he was transferred to the infamous Saydnaya Prison, where he spent ten months. “Thank God, I survived and was later moved to Suweida Prison,” he said.

Describing the conditions in Saydnaya, Suleiman stated: “The situation was dire. Families who were allowed brief visits noticed the detainees were emaciated, suffering from malnutrition and the effects of torture. We were nothing but skin and bones. Families began protesting outside the prison for five or six days, demanding the release of their loved ones. They also reported smelling decomposing bodies near the prison, where mass graves were being dug.”

Suleiman also recalled the actions of the then-prison director, Talaat Mahfouz, who was later killed by Free Syrian Army factions. Mahfouz told protesters that the detainees would be moved to civilian prisons. Days later, the detainees were transferred in two groups.

“We left Saydnaya in vehicles we referred to as ‘meat trucks,’” Suleiman recounted. One vehicle transported 55 detainees to Adra Civilian Prison, while another, carrying 65 detainees including Suleiman, was sent to Suweida Prison. Plans to transfer them to Idlib Central Prison were disrupted by ongoing battles in Idlib between Free Syrian Army factions and Assad’s forces."

Suleiman noted that detainees in Adra accused of “terrorism” were later returned to Saydnaya after false reports from Nabil Al-Ghajri, Adra’s civil registry officer, alleging they were planning an uprising. They were executed upon their return. Those transferred to Suweida feared being sent back to Saydnaya under false charges and facing execution.

Suleiman recounted being sentenced to death by the military field court, a verdict that was commuted to life imprisonment three times.

Regarding the reasons for his arrest, Suleiman explained: “Someone falsely reported to the regime's security branches that I was the leader of an armed group, a financier, and had participated in attacks by the Free Syrian Army in 2011. None of it was true, yet I spent 13 years and five months in prison. It was an extremely harrowing experience.”

Before his arrest, Suleiman had undergone surgery on his eye. However, he lost his vision due to torture. Despite this, he expressed gratitude for surviving.

One of the most traumatic experiences Suleiman endured was witnessing brutal acts of torture in Branch 291.

“They brought in another detainee and impaled him. They used this horrifying act to pressure me into confessing to crimes I didn’t commit,” he recalled. He was also subjected to the “flying carpet,” a device that his spine while he was beaten, and “shabah,” where he was suspended by his wrists for four days.

“They wanted to break us completely,” Suleiman said. “They targeted sensitive parts of our bodies, leaving many infertile. Compared to Branch 291, the torture in Idlib's military security branch was less severe, focusing primarily on beatings.”

Suleiman admitted to minor charges under duress but noted that the regime sought larger confessions to justify its actions.

“The regime knows neither mercy nor humanity,” Suleiman concluded. “I pray for the souls of those martyred under this oppressive regime and for justice in this world and the hereafter. Praise be to God for our survival. God is our ultimate avenger.”