On March 13, 2024, the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum’s Simon-Skjodt Center for the Prevention of Genocide and the Syrian Emergency Task Force, hosted a roundtable of experts at the Museum in Washington, DC to discuss accountability mechanisms for the atrocities committed in Syria. Sema Nassar from SBC’s Investigations Team participated in the panel discussion, emphasising the importance of establishing the "Independent Institution on Missing Persons in Syria" and the pivotal role of civil society, including the families of the disappeared, in making this a reality.
The dialogue highlighted the importance of international cooperation to overcome the political and security obstacles that hinder the disclosure of the fate of the missing. It also discussed the creeping normalisation with the Assad regime and the impact of these normalisation attempts on civil society and on the survivors, and the steps that should be taken based on the current geopolitical landscape.
Furthermore, there was an urgent call for achieving comprehensive justice for the victims of the broader Syrian conflict and for supporting political initiatives and solutions to assist Syria's journey towards democracy, justice, and human rights.
