Action Group – Syria
The family of Shadi Ahmad Mustafa (born in 1996), a young Palestinian-Syrian man from Jaramana camp in rural Damascus, has renewed its appeal for information about his fate. He has been missing for nearly five years, since his arrest by members of the former Syrian regime’s military security forces after surviving a boat sinking off the Syrian coast.
The family told the Action Group that Shadi was forced to flee Syria to escape security persecution, which they described as “malicious” accusations and confessions. He initially went to Lebanon before attempting to travel abroad in search of safety and a better life.
The family added that the boat he was on sank off the Syrian coast, and while he survived, military security forces arrested all the survivors. Since then, all contact with him has been lost.
According to information obtained by the family, Shadi was transferred between several detention centers. Unconfirmed reports indicate he was among groups of detainees transferred from Syrian prisons months before the fall of the previous regime, but his whereabouts and fate remain unknown.
The family stated they have exhausted all avenues of inquiry without success, appealing to anyone with information about his fate or who saw him during his detention to contact them, hoping to end years of absence and waiting.
Adding to the family’s anguish is the fact that Shadi left behind a four-year-old child who has never known his father. His family continues to live in hope of learning his fate and resolving the mystery surrounding his case.