Free after 21 years in Assad prisons, a Syrian adjusts to being home

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Damascus, Syria – Fouad Naal spent 21 years successful situation nether the authorities of Bashar al-Assad.

He remained successful the notorious Sednaya and Adra prisons until December 8, 2024, which was not lone his liberation but besides the liberation of Syria from al-Assad’s rule, helium told Al Jazeera a time earlier the anniversary.

‘Tomorrow, I volition get out’

On December 8, Syria celebrated the archetypal anniversary of al-Assad fleeing Damascus for Moscow. His formation meant the extremity of 5 decades of al-Assad household rule, known for its brutality and ruthlessness.

Hundreds of thousands of radical person disappeared successful the al-Assad situation network. Even much experienced the brutal conditions and were near with carnal oregon intelligence ailments, traumas oregon terrible wellness conditions.

Naal said helium was summoned by the authorities “hundreds of times” earlier his apprehension and imprisonment successful 2004 for issuing a fatwa, a spiritual opinion, saying Syrians shouldn’t spell combat the United States penetration successful Iraq.

He and galore others believed the Syrian authorities was encouraging Syrians to spell to Iraq to combat against the US military, which had invaded the state successful 2003.

Many Muslims Naal knew decided to go, but ne'er made it to Iraq. The buses that had been provided to instrumentality them crossed the borderline into Iraq were bombed earlier leaving Syrian territory, helium said.

Naal suspected the Syrian authorities was down the onslaught connected the convoy and enactment retired his fatwa.

He was arrested with his woman and then-four-year-old girl and fixed a beingness sentence. He said the authorities accused him of readying to assassinate al-Assad and respective different elder authorities figures.

The charges were fake, helium said, but helium admitted to them nether coercion to escaped his girl and wife. He was sent to Sednaya, wherever helium was held successful what successful aboriginal years would go known arsenic the “Red Prison”.

He passed the clip moving out, speechmaking and studying law. In 2005, aft a afloat twelvemonth successful jail, helium was allowed monthly visits.

Conditions successful Sednaya were difficult. He recalled a clip erstwhile his eyelid was inflamed but medicine was withheld. The prisoners were besides not allowed to commune successful groups oregon work the Quran together, helium said.

Still, helium ne'er gave up anticipation of leaving prison. “I had a container packed, acceptable to go, each azygous day,” helium said.

“I ever thought: ‘Tomorrow, I volition get out.’”

The gyration begins

After Naal had been successful Sednaya for 7 years, the Syrian uprising began.

He and his chap prisoners had been pursuing the revolutions successful Tunisia, Egypt and Libya but didn’t judge a akin lawsuit would hap successful Syria.

“It was truly astonishing that successful Syria this is happening,” helium said.

“They were truly large moments of joy. I was blessed with the opening of the revolution.”

In 2012, Naal said helium was transferred from Sednaya to Adra Central Prison connected the northeastern outskirts of Damascus, wherever helium and different Muslims were enactment into a peculiar governmental wing.

It seemed arsenic though Sednaya was being emptied to person Syrians who were being rounded up for opposing the regime.

In Adra, the conditions were easier. Naal was placed with different alleged Islamists. They could pray. They were granted play visits during which they got quality of the extracurricular world.

“Within a period of the archetypal visits, everyone successful the situation had 1 oregon 2 phones,” helium said.

Furthermore, the situation medication successful Adra was acrophobic of Naal and the different prisoners owed to rumours that had dispersed astir them. One day, a constabulary serviceman approached him to inquire astir them. He was named Khadr, and Naal said helium aboriginal defected and joined the opposition

“He said: ‘Can I inquire you a question, sheikh?’ I told him: ‘Please.’

“He really asked maine if it were existent that we utilized to chopped disconnected the heads of officers successful Sednaya and play shot with them.”

‘Hey, you animals! Open the doors!’

On December 7, 2024, Naal said helium and his chap inmates knew anti-Assad forces were heading their way. The excitement was palpable, and immoderate prisoners suggested trying to interruption out.

“People couldn’t carnivore it immoderate more,” helium said.

By now, the prisoners knew that Aleppo had been liberated and were eagerly anticipating the rebels’ accomplishment successful Homs, Syria’s third-largest city.

Naal was awoken by the odor of java being made by his chap prisoners sometime successful the wee hours of December 8, 2024. The prisoners were anxious but excited.

At 1 point, Naal rang a doorbell that alerted the guards that a captive was successful need, but nary 1 responded. He rang again and, again, nothing.

Although swearing was forbidden successful the prison, Naal began swearing astatine the guards to effort to elicit a response.

“Hey, you animals! Open the doors!”

At 1 point, a captive who could spot retired a model dispersed the quality that the situation guards had lined up and were leaving the prison.

Shouts of “God is greatest” dispersed astir the prison. The excitement began to turn to the constituent that Naal said inmates began breaking the situation doors themselves.

But the trauma that immoderate of the prisoners suffered was truthful precocious that they were begging others to support the doors locked, fearing repercussions. Some, helium said, hid nether their covers.

Others felt determination was nary turning backmost and continued breaking down their compartment doors.

When they broke retired of their cells, the prisoners recovered defender uniforms scattered connected the crushed arsenic they ran to the prison’s weapons depot.

“People changeable successful the aerial retired of joy,” Naal said.

The prisoners moved distant from the situation and recovered an abandoned checkpoint. “There was a cookware of mate inactive boiling connected the burning wood,” helium said. “Guns were connected the crushed adjacent to abandoned subject uniforms.”

As they continued walking, Naal said helium and his chap prisoners encountered soldiers. Some had removed the tops of their uniforms but kept their pants. Instead of firing astatine them, the soldiers were telling the prisoners: “We are with you. We are with you,” Naal recalled.

Naal said the powerfulness of this infinitesimal appeared to beryllium a acquisition from the divine.

“You consciousness that adjacent a idiosyncratic who has nary religion successful God Almighty would consciousness that determination is simply a greater powerfulness than himself.”

A akin situation for al-Assad successful exile

Naal emerged from situation successful overmuch amended carnal information than others who were successful al-Assad’s situation strategy for shorter sentences.

“I exercised each time successful prison,” helium told Al Jazeera.

“I’m 51 years old,” helium said, past corrected himself.

“I’m 52, but I inactive subordinate myself with the property I was erstwhile I near prison.”

But helium has not emerged unscathed. He pointed to the closed doorway of the tiny country wherever helium was giving the interview.

“I don’t similar closed places. I don’t similar it successful general, but I don’t get affected by it psychologically,” helium said.

“I don’t privation to slumber with a closed door. I’m not upset, but I similar to person it open,” helium said.

He besides said helium and galore of his chap prisoners struggled to slumber aft they escaped situation due to the fact that they’d grown accustomed to the quiescent there.

Just a mates of days earlier this interview, helium revisited Sednaya Prison with a radical of Syrians and Ukrainians. The sojourn was emotionally fraught for him, but helium recognised its value for uncovering justness for radical successful Syria and beyond.

“What does Bashar al-Assad consciousness today? He is listening to these words and sitting similar a rodent hiding successful a burrow successful Russia. Even if this burrow is built of gold.

“We utilized to accidental that if the situation were a palace of gold, we inactive wouldn’t privation it. We’d alternatively spell location and unrecorded for an hr and dice bare for our freedom. Today, helium is surviving the aforesaid way,” Naal said.

Before his imprisonment, Naal said helium enjoyed doing everything astatine home. He utilized to not bask going to restaurants. “My parent raised maine not to devour successful beforehand of radical successful lawsuit they couldn’t spend what I americium eating,” helium said.

“I’d similar to get nutrient and travel backmost location to eat.”

Now, however, helium enjoys leaving the location to locomotion astir his neighbourhood. And helium endures going to restaurants due to the fact that helium sees the worth successful sharing a communal acquisition successful public, thing that can’t beryllium done successful prison.

He besides says it is important to retrieve that successful Syria, “the children made a revolution.”

“The 1 who won the gyration was Hamza al-Khatib,” helium said, speaking of the 13-year-old from Deraa who was apt brutally tortured to decease by Syrian information forces for taking portion successful an anti-regime protestation successful 2011.

He besides spoke of the teenagers successful Deraa who graffitied a partition with the operation “Your crook has come, ohio doctor.” It referred to al-Assad, who studied ophthalmology successful London.

“They were the trigger of this fashionable explosion, … the volcano,” Naal said

“It was the archetypal nail successful the coffin of Bashar al-Assad.”

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