On 15 December 2025, activists reported the arrest of the young man Amjad Abdul Aal, following his disappearance since the evening of 8 September 2025 in the Kafr Sousa area of the capital, Damascus.
Amjad Abdul Aal is a young man who works as an independent photographer. According to statements by his family, contact with Amjad Abdul Aal was cut off since the evening of 8 September 2025 after his disappearance in the Kafr Sousa area. After his family reviewed the Ministry of Interior affiliated with the Temporary Authority in Syria (Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham), it was found that Amjad is being detained by it without the provision of any reasons or legal justifications. He remains detained as of the date of preparation of this news.
The arrest of Amjad Abdul Aal comes within a broader context of restrictions targeting workers in the media and journalistic field. On 14 December 2025, the Temporary Authority in Syria arrested the Syrian/American journalist and writer Iyad Sharabji following his voluntary visit to the Criminal Security Department in Damascus.
Sharabji’s arrest came against the background of a lawsuit filed against him after he published a video clip in which he expressed opinions related to the young generation that grew up in Idlib Governorate during the years of the war. This was considered—according to the complaint—an incitement of sectarian and ethnic tensions and agitation, based on Cybercrime Law No. 20 of 2022 and articles from the Syrian Penal Code. Sharabji reported, prior to his detention, that he had received a death threat, while activists called for ensuring his safety and following legal procedures in his case.
These incidents show a worrying pattern of detention without stating reasons and the targeting of media workers, including independent photographers, in the capital Damascus during the mentioned period, amid the absence of clear official information regarding the legal bases for detention and guarantees of personal safety.
