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ConflictsSyria

Gruesome archive may help Syrians identify lost loved ones

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Volkmar Kabisch | Amir Musawy | Sulaiman Tadmory
December 4, 2025

An archive of photos shows the brutality of the ousted regime of Bashar Assad, while giving families clues to the fate of their lost loved ones. In Germany, the archive is being used to investigate the perpetrators.

A Syrian military police colonel secretly preserved a hard drive containing around 70,000 photos that document systematic torture and mass killings under the regime of former dictator Bashar Assad. Many images originate from a Damascus military hospital.

These files, analyzed by German and international media, now serve as critical evidence for investigations by Germany's Federal Prosecutor. For Syrian families, this archive may offer clues to the fate of missing loved ones.

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