Residents of the Cherubim Monastery area in the city of Saydnaya (Rif Dimashq governorate) found a mass grave containing the remains of more than 60 people on the morning of Friday, June 12.
The National Commission for the Missing told Enab Baladi that it received a report from residents of the area about suspected sites that may contain human remains or mass graves in the city of Saydnaya.
The commission said it conducted, in coordination with the relevant authorities, an initial field assessment to estimate the technical, logistical, and legal requirements needed for the response, in preparation for taking appropriate measures in accordance with approved professional and legal standards, while ensuring the protection of evidence and preserving the dignity of the victims.
According to the commission, such reports are handled within a humanitarian and professional approach that takes into account families’ right to know the truth, in coordination with the relevant authorities, in a way that contributes to revealing the fate of the missing and preserving the integrity of documentation and verification procedures.
The commission called on residents not to approach any sites suspected of containing human remains or mass graves, not to tamper with them or move any items from them, and to report them immediately through approved official channels.
It said this was necessary to protect evidence and ensure the integrity of the required technical and legal procedures.
Human Remains in Qalamoun
In the past period, three mass graves containing human remains were found in the Qalamoun area of Rif Dimashq.
Teams from the National Commission for the Missing, with the participation of Civil Defense teams, responded to a report about human remains in the town of al-Sahl, which administratively belongs to al-Nabk in the Qalamoun area of Rif Dimashq, on June 8.
The commission explained that it worked according to approved professional protocols and standards in documenting, collecting, and recovering the remains, in a way that ensures the protection of evidence and respect for the dignity of the victims.
The National Commission for the Missing confirmed at the time that work was continuing in coordination with the relevant authorities, as part of efforts to reveal the fate of the missing, do justice to their families, and preserve their right to know the truth.
Two Graves in Qara
Civilians in the city of Qara (Rif Dimashq governorate) found a site suspected of containing a new mass grave after discovering sealed bags that were later found to contain human remains, on May 30.
The Rif Dimashq Media Directorate explained at the time that the incident began when citizens opened one of the bags and found human bones inside, before other bags containing additional remains and bones were found around the same site.
According to the directorate, the area where the bags were found had been under the control of the Lebanese Hezbollah militia during the past years, requiring precise and comprehensive investigations to uncover the circumstances of the case and identify the victims and the parties responsible for these violations.
The National Commission for the Missing and the relevant authorities began taking the necessary legal and technical measures, including conducting a field inspection of the site, collecting evidence and remains, and verifying the possibility of other sites or remains in the area.
Residents in the city also found a second mass grave on June 5, containing the remains of four people.
Mass Graves
In the period following the fall of the former Syrian regime, civil teams and government bodies found many mass graves containing people who died during the years of the Syrian revolution at the hands of different parties to the conflict.
Most of these graves were at the hands of the former regime, which carried out field executions against thousands of detainees, or at the hands of the Islamic State group.
There is no specific number of mass graves in Syria. In an investigation published by The New York Times in cooperation with the Association of Detainees and the Missing in Sednaya Prison, witnesses helped identify the locations of two mass graves expected to contain thousands of bodies of Syrians who had been arrested.
One witness, who had worked before 2011 burying civilians and was later recruited by intelligence officers to dispose of bodies coming from detention centers, continuing this work for six years, revealed that the first grave he worked at from mid-2011 until early 2013 was located in the town of Najha, south of Damascus.
In early 2013, the regime established a new mass grave near a Syrian army base in the town of al-Qutayfah, north of Damascus, according to the witness. He added that, at some points during the six years he worked in the mass graves, his team unloaded two trucks about twice a week, each carrying between 150 and 600 bodies.
Separately, Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa, during the transitional phase, issued Decrees No. 19 and 20 of 2025 on May 17, 2025, stipulating the formation of the National Commission for the Missing and the National Commission for Transitional Justice, based on the provisions of the Constitutional Declaration and the powers granted to the president of the republic.
National Commission for the Missing Finds Remains Near Damascus
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