FOREIGN MEDIA DEPARTMENT

MINISTRY OF INFORMATION

Statement on the New York Times Report Concerning Alleged Abductions in Syria

The Syrian government takes all reports of abductions or disappearances seriously and is committed to protecting citizens regardless of sect, ethnicity, or religion. Every complaint is thoroughly investigated by the relevant authorities. Accordingly, the Ministry of Interior established a special investigative committee last July to examine complaints and allegations concerning abductions.

The New York Times presented its report as an investigative work, yet it appears more like a narrative construction than professional investigative journalism. Most of the evidence cited relies on anonymous testimonies or accounts from unspecified individuals with no clear connection to the cases. Moreover, the newspaper moves quickly from an evidentiary vacuum to a ready-made interpretive framework, framing the narrative as retaliatory attacks targeting the Alawite sect. This leap reflects a classic pattern of orientalist stereotyping, invoking the image of the "jihadist" to fill gaps in evidence and use it to support a broader, generalized narrative. In reality, the report provides no information about the perpetrators' identities, aside from a single unverified mention, where it offers only descriptions of victims' psychological state.

Prior to publication, the Foreign Media Department conveyed to the New York Times reporter the Ministry of Interior's readiness to cooperate, provided access to the special committee's findings, and requested the specific cases cited for evidence-based review. The Ministry of Interior reviewed the information provided by the reporter, which was insufficient to support a comprehensive investigation, identified some intersections with the committee's investigation results, and shared these findings during an extensive meeting.

Despite this, the published article did not include the Ministry of Interior's findings regarding the cases mentioned in the New York Times report, nor did it present them as an account responding to the allegations. Instead, the Ministry's investigative results were included in a general and decontextualized manner, separated from the cases covered by the newspaper. The result is a one-sided presentation lacking cross-verification, a clear methodological deficiency that undermines a fundamental principle of investigative work.

The Ministry of Interior's investigative committee announced its findings at a press conference last November, confirming that no evidence was found of systemic abductions of women targeting any components of Syrian society.

4 April 2026