On December 11, a report from the CNN news network from Syria moved the world. Correspondent Clarissa Ward and her team found a man who identified himself as Adel Ghurbal in a Damascus prison cell, which was padlocked from the outside. The regime of Bashar al Assad had fallen three days before and this prison was already almost empty. The person found said he was a civilian who had been arrested three months ago and who went through three different prisons. However, his story is different.
Clarissa Ward was investigating the case of the American journalist Austin Ticewho disappeared in Syria on August 13, 2012. In the middle of that search, he entered a Damascus prison which had already been taken by the rebels who overthrew Assad. When they searched the building, they found a cell that remained closed with a padlock and with a person inside, the same person who was covered with a blanket. The rebel guard broke the padlock with a shot and they were able to enter.
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When questioned, the man, visibly scared and bewilderedsaid to be Adel Ghurbal, a civilian from the city of Homsin central Syria.
The moment the prisoner was found. (CNN).
He also stated that I didn’t know that the Assad regime had fallen.
The journalist Ward He described the event as “one of the most extraordinary moments I have witnessed” in his 20 years of journalism.
According to CNN, The prison where he was held was controlled by the intelligence services of the Syrian Air Force loyal to Al Assad.
The man drank water when the reporter offered it to him. As he left the cell holding hands with the journalist and the rebel guard, he said “oh, God, there is light!”
The true story of Adel Ghurbal
However, a few days later, Verify-Sya Syrian fact-checking site, revealed that the man’s name is actually Salama Mohammad Salamaand that was a former intelligence officer in the Assad government.
CNN also said it obtained an image confirming that it is called Salama Mohammad Salamaa lieutenant of the Air Force Intelligence Directorate of the Al Assad regime.
The news network reported that a resident of the Bayada neighborhood, in Homsgave him a photograph of the man from when he was on dutyin what appears to be a government office.
Facial recognition software provided a more than 99% match to the man CNN found in the cell prison Damascus.
The photograph provided to CNN shows him sitting at a desk, apparently wearing military clothing.
CNN added that while continuing to seek information about the prisoner released after the original report, several residents of Homs They told the channel that it was actually Salama, also known as Abu Hamza.
Those residents told CNN that Salama directed the checkpoints of the Air Force Intelligence Directorate in Homs and they accused him of having a bad reputation, because had been accused of extortion and harassment. Also from coercion civilians to become informants for the regime Assad.
Nobody knows where it is
Salama Mohammad Salama. (CNN).
CNN said it is unknown why Salama ended up in jail Damascus. He added that he has not been able to reestablish contact with him.
According to Verify-Sy, Salama had been imprisoned for less than a month due to a dispute over “the sharing of profits from extorted funds with a higher-ranking officer.”
Verify-Sy noted that when it was found it appeared “well-groomed and physically healthy, with no visible injuries or signs of torture, an incongruous depiction of someone who was supposedly held in solitary confinement in the dark for 90 days.”
Additionally, Verify-Sy found that there was no record of an Adel Ghurbal in Homswhich led him to his true identity, Salama.
Before knowing his true identity, The rebel guards handed him over to the Syrian Red Crescent, CNN said. This organization then posted a photo of him on social media, saying that they had returned a released prisoner to his relatives in Damascus.
What Clarissa Ward said
British-American journalist Clarissa Ward speaks during the awards ceremony in Bayeux, northwest France, on October 12, 2024. (Photo by Lou BENOIST /AFP).
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A CNN spokeswoman told the AP that no one outside the network knew in advance about the journalist’s plans. Ward to visit the Damascus prison. CNN reported on what happened at the time, according to the network.
Clarissa Ward He spoke on Tuesday about the topic: “I think we should be humble in the face of challenges”said. “It is a chaotic environment, there is a lot of change and it is very difficult to verify information in real time on the ground… Stories take unexpected turns. “We have to continue to inform them without fear or favor, but it is immensely challenging in this environment and I think we need to be transparent about it.”.
