Syria launches virtual museum to document prison abuses under Assad rule
Digital archive preserves testimonies of detainees and evidence of torture in notorious prisons
DAMASCUS, Syria (MNTV) — A Syrian organization unveiled a virtual museum in Damascus dedicated to documenting the experiences of detainees imprisoned during decades of Assad family rule, aiming to preserve collective memory and advance accountability efforts.
The Syria Prisons Museum provides 3D virtual tours of detention facilities, alongside testimonies from former prisoners, investigative reports, and academic studies.
Organizers described the project as a “living digital archive” that seeks to honor victims, amplify survivor voices, and prepare evidence files for future justice mechanisms.
“The museum seeks to preserve the dark Syrian memory associated with violence, murder, and prisons,” project founder Amer Matar told AFP at the launch ceremony held in the National Museum of Damascus.
He noted that researchers have so far been able to document 70 prisons before they risk being lost or destroyed.
According to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, more than two million Syrians were detained under the Assad family’s rule, half of them following the 2011 peaceful protests that were violently suppressed and sparked a 14-year civil war.
The group estimates that over 200,000 people died in prisons, many from torture or execution. Amnesty International once described the Saydnaya facility as a “human slaughterhouse.”
The Prisons Museum Foundation, which spearheaded the initiative, previously documented Islamic State detention centers in 2017.
Following the fall of Bashar al-Assad in December, the group worked with Syrian and international organizations specializing in missing persons and transitional justice to create the new digital platform.
The project integrates survivor testimonies, accounts from families of missing detainees, and reconstructions of prison scenes.
Organizers said the initiative is also designed to contribute to Syria’s transitional justice process by creating verifiable records of abuses.
In May, Syria’s new authorities announced national commissions for missing persons and transitional justice.
While rights groups welcomed the move, they cautioned that achieving justice will be a long process requiring independent investigations and accountability for violations committed by all sides in the conflict.
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