Syrian officer faces prosecution over death of detainee with hemophilia
A Syrian police investigator will be prosecuted after a detainee with hemophilia died following a slap during interrogation, officials said.
A police investigator in Syria is set to face prosecution after a detainee with a bleeding disorder died following an interrogation, according to officials on Thursday.
The announcement came after Syria's interior ministry launched an investigation earlier this week into the death of Mohammad Ghamira, a 29-year-old father of two. Ghamira, a former volunteer with the White Helmets civil defense group, died in a hospital in Latakia on Sunday after being released from jail. He had been detained days earlier over a theft allegation, according to the local internal security command.
Family members said they had informed police that Ghamira had hemophilia, a condition that impairs blood clotting, and warned against any physical contact.
Maj. Gen. Ahmed Latouf, who headed the investigative committee, said medical experts determined that Ghamira died from complications of a cerebral hemorrhage. The probe found that an interrogator had slapped Ghamira on the neck during questioning, despite being aware of his medical condition.
The investigator has been referred to the public prosecution division, and disciplinary proceedings against other police personnel are ongoing, Latouf said.
Ghamira's death has sparked widespread anger in Syria, reviving painful memories of torture and abuse in detention centers under the decades-long rule of the Assad dynasty. Rights groups have noted that abuses in detention facilities have continued under the new authorities, though one group, Syrians for Truth and Justice, said it found no evidence of a centralized torture system comparable to that of the former regime.