Sectarian violence erupts in Syria despite U.S.-backed ceasefire
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Daily Mirror
10 hours ago
- Daily Mirror
Harrowing final words of tortured prisoner executed in 'human slaughter house'
Warning: Distressing content. Thousands of people died inside Bashar Al-Assad's 'human slaughterhouse' prisons in Syria - and one man's harrowing final words were documented by a guard The conditions inside Bashar Al-Assad's 'human slaughterhouse' prisons in Syria were beyond most people's worst nightmares. Thousands of people died inside them, or vanished - but everyone incarcerated within them suffered. Torture was a daily horror, not just in the much-dreaded interrogations, but in the conditions within which the prisoners were held in such close proximity that some are even said to have suffered psychosis from oxygen deprivation. When his oppressive regime was finally overthrown, relatives of those who had been imprisoned flooded into the facilities, desperate for answers about where their loved ones had gone, and footage was recorded of families searching frantically through debris for any clue of their fates. Brit wife of exiled Syria dictator Bashar Al-Assad 'barred from UK' amid cancer battle Qatar Airways resumes flights to Syria after 13 year break due to civil war Prisoners were fed like animals from large pails, and lived in such cramped conditions that guards revealed it was not possible to see the floor. At the Air Force Intelligence branch in Harasta, conditions could not have been more hellish. The once-second-in-command of the facility, Colonel Zain, hauntingly admitted: "The place I worked in was very famous for its bloody practices and the number of detainees held there. We would pack 400 detainees in a room that was eight by ten metres. "You wouldn't set eyes on the floor when you entered; bodies of detainees blanketed it. The screams emanating from the interrogation room situated directly below my office were no secret. It was common knowledge how we conducted our interrogations. "The temperature was around 40 degrees, because it was so crowded. We saw strange cases of disease amongst prisoners, I think, due to oxygen deficiency because of overcrowding. These psychotic episodes soon turned into physical symptoms," he said to BBC Two's documentary Surviving Syria's Prisons. It has been estimated by Amnesty International that 13000 people died in these nightmare slaughterhouse prisons in just the first four years after the Arab Spring in 2011, which, after a brief hope it might bring better times, swiftly turned into a hellish civil conflict, with protests in Damascus put down ruthlessly. Inside these prisons, guards tortured - often entirely false - confessions from prisoners, threw execution parties, and were even told to "bury them alive". Hussam, another guard and former military policeman, told the BBC of the haunting last words of a prisoner who faced execution, and the extensive torture they inflicted on prisoners. "Our superiors would say, 'Torture them, don't let them sleep at night. Throw them a party... put them in a grave if you want to, bury them alive'. "When they'd call me to go and torture them, the prisoners would go back to their cells bloody and exhausted. On Wednesday mornings, we'd have an 'execution party'. Our role during executions was to place the rope on the prisoner - only an officer could push the chair." He continued, "One time, the chair was pushed, but after 22 minutes he didn't die. So I grabbed him and pulled him downwards, so another guard who was bigger and stronger said, 'go I will do it.' Before he died he said one thing: 'I'm going to tell God what you did'." An army nurse revealed in the documentary that they were not allowed to record the real causes of death, whether that was extensive torture or execution. "It was forbidden to record the cause of death as torture. Even those killed from gunshots were recorded as heart and respiratory failure." Over 130 mass grave sites have so far been discovered in Syria, with families facing the distressing prospect of struggling to identfiy their loved ones amongst the countless dead.
Daily Record
a day ago
- Daily Record
Royal Caribbean crew member 'jumps overboard to his death after stabbing colleague'
The horror incident is understood to have happened shortly before 7.30pm on Thursday. A Royal Caribbean cruise crew member jumped overboard to his death after stabbing another crew member on the ship, authorities in the Bahamas have confirmed. The horror incident is understood to have happened shortly before 7.30pm local time on Thursday, July 24. The Royal Bahamas Police Force told NBC News that a 35-year-old South African man who worked on the ship allegedly stabbed a 28-year-old South African woman several times onboard the Icon of the Seas. According to reports the ship was in the waters off the coast of San Salvador Island in the Bahamas at the time. The man fled the scene of the stabbing and jumped overboard, police said. He was later found dead by onboard medical staff. Officers confirmed the woman, who suffered stab wounds to her upper body, was in stable condition. The two crew members, who have not been named, were involved in "a personal dispute," a Royal Caribbean spokesperson told NBC News. The spokesperson said: "One of the crew members was injured, was attended to by the onboard medical team, and she is now in stable condition. "Unfortunately, the other crew member is deceased after he went overboard and was recovered in a search and rescue operation." As reported by the Mirror, neither of the crew members have been identified. An autopsy will take place to determine the man's cause of death. After the incident, the ship reportedly dropped life preservers into the water near where the man fell to mark his location and aid in his rescue. Shortly thereafter, a rescue boat was deployed, WSVN reported, and the man's body was pulled from the sea. Join the Daily Record WhatsApp community! Get the latest news sent straight to your messages by joining our WhatsApp community today. You'll receive daily updates on breaking news as well as the top headlines across Scotland. No one will be able to see who is signed up and no one can send messages except the Daily Record team. All you have to do is click here if you're on mobile, select 'Join Community' and you're in! If you're on a desktop, simply scan the QR code above with your phone and click 'Join Community'. We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don't like our community, you can check out any time you like. To leave our community click on the name at the top of your screen and choose 'exit group'. If you're curious, you can read our Privacy Notice. The ship had been en route to the Bahamas' Coco Cay at the time of the incident, and it continued its planned trip itinerary afterward. It's scheduled to return to Miami on Saturday, the outlet reported. The Icon of the Seas is the world's largest cruise ship. It has 20 decks (18 guest decks) and has 2,350 international crew members. It was built by Meyer Turku in Turku, Finland and measures 1196 feet (364 meters) long and 219 feet (66 meters) wide. It has a gross tonnage of 250,800 and can carry up to 7,600 passengers at maximum capacity. It has dozens of restaurants and bars to choose from and has lots of activities to do, including; laser tag, mini golf, sports courts, an escape room, a theatre and much more. The Mirror has contacted Royal Caribbean Cruises and Royal Bahamas Police Force for comment.
Daily Mirror
2 days ago
- Daily Mirror
Royal Caribbean crew member 'stabs colleague then jumps overboard to his death'
The 35-year-old man reportedly stabbed his 28-year-old female colleague multiple times before jumping off the Icon of the Seas cruise ship, according to officials Authorities in the Bahamas have said a Royal Caribbean cruise crew member jumped overboard to his death after stabbing another crew member on the ship. The horrific stabbing is alleged to have happened on Thursday July 24 shortly before 7:30pm local time. A 35-year-old South African man who worked on the ship allegedly stabbed a 28-year-old South African woman several times onboard the Icon of the Seas, the Royal Bahamas Police Force told NBC News. The ship was reportedly in the waters off the coast of San Salvador Island in the Bahamas at the time. The man then reportedly fled the scene of the stabbing and jumped overboard, police said. The man was later found dead by onboard medical staff. Police confimed the woman suffered stab wounds to her upper body but is in stable condition. The two crew members, who have not been named, were involved in "a personal dispute," a Royal Caribbean spokesperson told NBC News. The spokesperson said: "One of the crew members was injured, was attended to by the onboard medical team, and she is now in stable condition. "Unfortunately, the other crew member is deceased after he went overboard and was recovered in a search and rescue operation." Neither of the crew members have been identified. An autopsy will take place to determine the man's cause of death. After the incident, the ship reportedly dropped life preservers into the water near where the man fell to mark his location and aid in his rescue. Shortly thereafter, a rescue boat was deployed, WSVN reported, and the man's body was pulled from the sea. The ship had been en route to the Bahamas' Coco Cay at the time of the incident, and it continued its planned trip itinerary afterward. It's scheduled to return to Miami on Saturday, the outlet reported. The Icon of the Seas is the world's largest cruise ship. It has 20 decks (18 guest decks) and has 2,350 international crew members. It was built by Meyer Turku in Turku, Finland and measures 1196 feet (364 meters) long and 219 feet (66 meters) wide. It has a gross tonnage of 250,800 and can carry up to 7,600 passengers at maximum capacity. It has dozens of restaurants to bars to chose from and has lots of activities to do, including; laser tag, mini golf, sports courts, an escape room a theatre and much more.
