CNN May Have Unwittingly Rescued a Member of Syrian Intelligence

What Happened?

According to Justin Baragona of the Independent, CNN reporter Clarissa Ward:

‘Visited a prison building at the Syrian Air Force Intelligence headquarters as part of a search for missing American journalist Austin Tice. Nobody at the facility was previously aware that the camera crew was coming, and the visit was unannounced, the network added.’

‘Once inside the building, according to the report, Ward noticed that one door was locked and it appeared that someone was inside. After the armed guard shot the lock off the door, the CNN team found a man hiding under a blanket and seemingly traumatized. The man, who identified himself as Adel Ghurbal from Homs, asked for water and food while claiming he had not seen sunlight for three months.’

Here's the aftermath of the story…

Why it Matters

After the surprising collapse of the Assad regime in Syria, Syrian government facilities were left unmanned including all the notorious prisons under the regime’s former control.

Consequently, many former prisoners have been freed or escaped, with many international groups documenting or actually facilitating the escape of former Syrian regime prisoners.

One of those escapes touted by CNN reporter Clarrisa Ward has come under international scrutiny due to the alleged identity of the person she claims to have rescued.

While CNN initially claimed Ward had helped free a former political prisoner of the Assad regime, new information has come to light which suggests the person in Ward’s story may have been an intelligence officer accused of war crimes.

According to Patrick Reilly of the New York Post ‘a detailed report Sunday said that the seemingly innocent prisoner was actually Salama Mohammad Salama — a first lieutenant in Syrian air force intelligence with a long history of alleged war crimes.’

Though this claim has yet to be substantiated, CNN’s original story of a heroic rescue now appears to be very much in doubt.

How it Affects You

The sudden collapse of the Assad regime in Syria has created a host of new security challenges in the Middle East both for Syria’s neighbors and for the entire international community.

In addition to former regime prisoners, chemical weapons and other stockpiles of munitions known to be in the possession of the Assad regime are now available for the taking by a number of different terrorist groups operating in Syria.

Israel has launched numerous airstrikes to destroy the Assad regime weapons before they can fall into the hands of terrorist groups, but no similar efforts have been undertaken to ensure the whereabouts of former regime officers who may have committed war crimes. 

War zones are chaotic and information that continues to trickle out of Syria should be taken with a grain of salt.