This article discusses rape, torture, and the mental abuse of children.
Following the collapse of the former Syrian government, Doctors Without Borders/Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF) teams at Salqin Hospital in northwestern Syria are treating patients who were recently released from prisons in the south of the country , including Sednaya prison near Damascus.
MSF currently does not work in areas that were until recently controlled by the former Syrian government, but continues to provide health care and humanitarian support in northern areas of the country, including care for people with non-communicable diseases such as diabetes, mental health support, mobile clinics, and other vital services. We also provide clean drinking water, blankets, and other vital supplies to displaced people, many of whom have lived in tents for several years.
Below, two MSF staff members share their experiences treating people who were recently released from prison in areas under the former Syrian government’s control.
"The signs of torture are still visible on the mother and her son"
[We received] a patient who was imprisoned when she was 19 years old. [She and her son] arrived at Salqin Hospital showing signs of claustrophobia and a bad mental state. They were treated with full confidentiality at the hospital, with the help of the mental health team. We did some medical tests including X-rays.
They were detained for years. The signs of torture are still visible on the mother and her son. The child saw detainees being sexually abused. Talking to him was very difficult. For instance, he doesn’t know what a road is, or what a tree is.
We provided the necessary medical care. The main symptoms these two patients were showing included severe psychological trauma. They don’t suffer from malnutrition.
For psychological support, the mental health team will visit them at their home on a weekly basis to work on the child’s behavioral disorders and the mother’s mental health. We will also provide psychological educational sessions to the family.
"They looked shocked"
Most of the cases had signs of trauma. They looked shocked with what happened to them because of different types of torture, whether physical, psychological, or sexual.
In addition to being denied food and sunlight, most of the prisoners were severely crying, not able to sleep, always alert, and scared. They are shaking, they can’t focus ... They can’t properly talk. Most of them don’t feel safe. They are afraid to go back to prison. They are claustrophobic. Some of them even asked to receive medical care in an open space.
Yesterday we received a former detainee. She spent 8 years in Sednaya prison. She is 27 years old now. She went to prison with her young son who was 3 months old. She was released with her son, who’s now 8 years old.
The boy doesn’t know what a biscuit is, or a juice, a bird, or even a toy to play with. He doesn’t know how to read or write. He doesn’t know his family, nor his father. He watched his mother being physically and sexually abused.
Today we received a patient who got out of prison only 70 hours ago. He was crying and trembling, he couldn’t make a proper sentence. He’s very emotional. He still cannot believe he’s out of prison. He is traumatized by [seeing] his friend’s body who was lying dead in the same cell for two days [after being] beaten to death by a soldier.
