Omar Alshogre is shown in the left image in July 2015 and in the right image in January 2017, one month after he got out of Syria’s Saydnaya prison. But the story of the Saydnaya military prison deserves attention, if only because it shows the regime’s calculated sadism and cold determination to exterminate all who oppose it. These were not rebel fighters, but civilians perceived to oppose the government in some way: participants in demonstrations, dissidents, human rights advocates, journalists. Many died before execution from the horrific conditions in the prison, including starvation and rape. A decision by the Trump administration to tolerate or even support the butchers of Damascus will only result in more warfare, more recruits for the Islamic State and al-Qaeda, and more unconscionable murders at Saydnaya prison.

Source: Washington Post February 12, 2017 00:33 UTC