Leaked detainee photos from Assad's Syria

An archive of death

The Damascus Dossier includes more than 33,000 photos of the bodies of people who were arrested and killed by the Assad regime.

CONTENT WARNING

The following images depict victims who were tortured and ultimately killed. They are graphic and may be deeply distressing. Viewer discretion is strongly advised.

The Damascus Dossier leaked files include chilling high-resolution photographs documenting the deaths of more than 10,200 Syrian prisoners.

To better understand the realities captured in these images, a team of journalists from ICIJ, NDR and Süddeutsche Zeitung analyzed a random sample of 540 photographs. This approach allowed us to generate results with a 98% level of statistical confidence.

The following figures draw from that analysis as well as broader reporting from the Damascus Dossier investigation.

Most photos in the files focus on the body of a single person, often photographed in a rapid, standardized sequence: three pictures per victim, from different angles.

Pictured are three images of activist Mazen al-Hamada, whose family gave ICIJ and NDR permission to use the photographs.

Some photos include multiple detainees.

In more than 75% of the analyzed photos, the corpses were on the floor or a metal surface, with no body bag, blanket or shroud.

Nearly half the bodies were naked, while a third were partially clothed.

Photos rarely included the prisoners’ names. Detainees were reduced to numbers in a systematic cataloguing of their deaths.

Most photos include a white card — either placed on the body, nearby or later added to the image — identifying the detainee’s number and detailing which security branch was responsible for their custody. Some corpses were labeled directly with markings on their bodies.

Close to three-quarters of the bodies showed signs of starvation. This stood out as one of the most prevalent conditions captured in the photographic evidence.

Two-thirds had evidence of physical harm such as bruises and lacerations.

More than half included injuries to their face, head or neck — most often blunt force trauma, but some also had evidence of cuts or stab wounds.

The photos, meticulously organized in digital folders, betray a methodical, state-run system of detention, torture and disposal.

During the course of the investigation, the Damascus Dossier team learned that the photographs were independently shared with German authorities, who have led efforts to prosecute former members of the Assad regime. They are also now in the possession of the Syrian Center for Legal Studies and Research, a German NGO documenting human rights violations.

ICIJ and NDR extracted detainees' names from the photos and other Damascus Dossier records, and NDR shared the information with three other entities to help families identify missing relatives: the United Nations’ Independent Institution on Missing Persons in Syria; the Syrian Network for Human Rights; and Ta'afi, an initiative supporting survivors of detention and torture.