Ms. Abeer Ajib and her child, Ali Muayyad Nu’man (5 years old), went missing after contact was lost with them at the Old Baniyas Garage on the morning of Monday, April 27, 2026, in Tartus Governorate. This incident raises serious concerns regarding their potential abduction or enforced disappearance.
According to available information, Ms. Abeer Ajib had departed from her residence in the village of Asqabla (Thermal Power Plant Housing), heading with her child to visit her family in the Harisun area in the Baniyas countryside. Contact was lost at 8:30 AM while they were at the Old Baniyas Garage; since then, no confirmed information has been available regarding their fate or whereabouts.
The woman belongs to the Alawite community, which heightens concerns regarding the possibility of her being targeted based on her religious affiliation, within a broader context of violations affecting civilians of diverse religious and ethnic backgrounds in Syria.
This incident reflects a disturbing pattern of grave human rights violations in Syria, including cases of kidnapping, enforced disappearance, and arbitrary detention, which are exacerbated by weak accountability mechanisms and the absence of effective legal protection for civilians.
Furthermore, this occurrence falls within a context of escalating anxiety over the rise in kidnappings and enforced disappearances targeting civilians, particularly women—including those belonging to religious or sectarian minorities—which doubles their vulnerability and exposes them to additional risks.
The disappearance of the woman and her child constitutes a serious violation of the right to liberty and security of person, a right guaranteed under international human rights law. The continued lack of communication without disclosure of their fate raises strong suspicions regarding the possibility of them being victims of the crime of enforced disappearance.
This incident calls for urgent action from the relevant authorities to reveal the fate of Ms. Abeer Ajib and her child Ali Muayyad Nu’man, ensure their safety, initiate a serious and transparent investigation into the circumstances of the incident, and hold those responsible accountable, in accordance with international legal obligations related to the protection of civilians.
