Syria: What is the ICRC's contribution in the search for missing people?

Since the start of the armed conflict in Syria, the ICRC, together with our Red Cross and Red Crescent partners, has registered 35,000 cases of people who have gone missing in Syria. This number reflects the requests of the families who approached the ICRC - we know that in reality the figures are far greater. Years, even decades, of living in uncertainty have inflicted immense suffering and pain on these families, who still yearn for answers. Addressing the issue of missing people is vital to achieving lasting peace and reconciliation. 

The search for missing persons is a complex and long-term endeavor requiring the support and participation of and coordination amongst authorities, the parties to a conflict, as well as civil society organizations and international actors. Through it all, the ICRC remains firm in its commitment to stand with the families of missing persons in addressing their right to know and in finding much needed closure.

Immediate Concerns

As prisons and other detention centres are opened and detainees released, critical information - such as arrest records, detainee lists, and documentation held by state institutions - is at risk of being lost or compromised. Known and potential gravesites must also be safeguarded to ensure they can contribute to future efforts to identify and honor the missing.

The ICRC calls on all authorities in Syria to:

• Preserve vital records: Secure and preserve records of arrest, lists of detainees or deceased, hospital records, court records and any other official documentation that can help clarify the fate and whereabouts of missing persons. 
• Protect gravesites: Prevent the disturbance of, and protect, possible grave sites that may contain the remains of missing persons, and refrain from premature exhumations that cannot be carried out according to forensic standards. 
• Prevent further disappearance: Prevent any further instances of people going missing in the period ahead in full respect with applicable international humanitarian law (IHL) and human rights law obligations. 

The Role of the ICRC

For the past 13 years, the ICRC has worked with families of the missing and parties to the conflict in Syria. This has included mental health and financial support as well as working with our Red Cross and Red Crescent partners to search for the much-needed answers that families are looking for. 

Drawing on extensive experience in conflict and post-conflict contexts worldwide, the ICRC offers its expertise to all parties exercising authority in Syria in their efforts to clarify the fate and whereabouts of missing people. The ICRC has a broad experience providing technical support to national mechanisms for missing persons, including forensic standards, and supporting authorities to fulfill their obligations under IHL to search for missing persons and recover and manage the deceased.    The ICRC coordinates with other relevant actors such as civil society, the Independent Institution on Missing Persons (IIMP) and other international actors.

Helpful Information for Former detainees and their Families

Anyone looking for answers on their loved ones can be in touch with the ICRC or your closest Red Cross or Red Crescent office. The ICRC in Damascus has established hotlines to support former detainees and their families. The information gathered allows the ICRC to open a case and work with our Red Cross and Red Crescent partners across the world to find answers based on the information provided.

Families looking for a missing loved one can contact their closest Red Cross or Red Crescent office. The ICRC can only register and follow up cases from the country families are currently living in.

• If you are in Lebanon, call the ICRC at 01 727 727
• If you are in Jordan, call the ICRC at 01 659 019 99 or the Jordan Red Crescent at 01 647 731 41
• If you are in Iraq, call the ICRC at 800 222 22

• If you are in Egypt, call the Egyptian Red Crescent at 11 445 560 02
   

  For other countries, search at www.familylinks.icrc.org/directory

  Please note that finding information about your relative can take some time. 

  All the ICRC’s humanitarian services are free.