Syrian Artist Alleges Regime Used Mental Hospitals to Hide Detainees

Syrian Artist Alleges Regime Used Mental Hospitals to Hide Political Prisoners

Former prisoner Samar Kokash, who endured four years in a Syrian regime prison, has made chilling allegations that authorities used psychiatric institutions to conceal political detainees.

Kokash, speaking out about her harrowing experiences between 2013 and 2017, described witnessing the regime forcibly transfer captive girls to mental hospitals, labeling them as mentally unstable.

“I remember two female inmates in my ward,” Kokash recounted. “They had bruises and blue marks on their bodies, and a strong smell of blood clung to them.We had to cut off parts of their hair to clean the blood.”

One of the women, Kokash said, confided in her, revealing she had been attacked by gangs. The details, Kokash believes, pointed to the woman being held in a torture wing before being transferred.

“She told me, ‘I knew you,'” Kokash recalled.

Deeply disturbed by what she witnessed, Kokash documented the names of the detainees on a piece of paper, entrusting it to her daughter for safekeeping.

“I hope that one day, the fate of these girls will be revealed,” Kokash said.She now appeals to officials and human rights organizations to investigate mental hospitals in Syria, hoping to shed light on the fate of those forcibly disappeared.

A Conversation About a Horrifying Allegation

Maya: Did you hear about that former prisoner’s interview? It’s absolutely horrifying.

Javier: No, tell me more.

Maya: This artist, Samar kokash, spent years in a syrian regime prison and she’s saying they were sending girls who were actually political prisoners to mental hospitals.

Javier: What? Why would they do that?

Maya: She claims they labeled them as mentally unstable to hide them. Can you imagine?

Javier: That’s astonishing. How did she find out?

Maya: She witnessed it firsthand. She described seeing these women in her ward,covered in bruises and smelling strongly of blood. They said they’d been beaten. One even confessed to Kokash that she’d been attacked.

Javier: That’s just awful. What happened to these women?

Maya: kokash doesn’t know. She believes they were taken to these mental institutions, essentially disappearing. She even wrote down their names and gave the list to her daughter to keep safe.

javier: She’s hoping that someday their fate will be revealed. It’s heartbreaking. What happened to her after she was released?

maya: She’s speaking out now, pleading wiht officials and human rights groups to investigate Syrian mental hospitals. She wants to know what happened to these women and to shed light on this horrific practice.

A Chilling Allegation

Chloe: Did you see that interview with the syrian artist who was imprisoned? It’s just heartbreaking.

David: No,what did she say?

Chloe: She claims the Syrian regime was sending political prisoners,particularly young women,to mental hospitals.

David: What? Why would they do that?

Chloe: Apparently,they labeled them as mentally unstable to hide them from the outside world. Can you imagine?

David: That’s absolutely horrifying. How did she find out?

Chloe: She said she witnessed it firsthand while she was incarcerated. She described finding thes women in her ward,covered in bruises and smelling of blood.One even told her she had been attacked by gangs.

David: Oh my god, that’s awful.What happened to them?

Chloe: She doesn’t know for sure. She believes they were transferred to these mental institutions and essentially disappeared. She even wrote down their names and gave the list to her daughter to keep safe.

David: That’s incredibly brave of her. What’s she doing now?

Chloe: She’s speaking out now, pleading with human rights organizations to investigate these hospitals. She wants answers about what happened to these women and to expose this horrific practice.