ICMP chief praises Syria’s efforts to address missing persons’ issue
QAMISHLI, Syria (North Press) – Kathryne Bomberger, Director-General of the International Commission on Missing Persons (ICMP), praised on Thursday the swift establishment of the Syrian National Commission on Missing Persons, describing it as a significant step toward addressing one of Syria’s most pressing human rights challenges.
In an interview with North Press, Bomberger said the newly formed commission “embraces principles of impartiality,” meaning it is committed to finding all missing persons regardless of their ethnic, religious, or national background, the circumstances of their disappearance, or the time and place they went missing.
“It is our pleasure to support a commission that has been established by Syria so quickly after the liberation of Damascus,” Bomberger stated, adding that Syria’s rapid engagement with human rights issues was “remarkable.”
She stressed that the international community — including the ICMP, the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), and the UN Independent Institution for Missing Persons — would work closely with the Syrian body to ensure it fulfills its mandate to locate missing persons and guarantee the rights of their families “to truth, justice, accountability, and reparations.”
The Syrian National Commission on Missing Persons was announced shortly after the Syrian government’s declaration of a transitional phase following the fall of the Assad regime.
According to previous North Press reports, the move followed international calls for an inclusive mechanism to address the fate of over 100,000 people who went missing during the Syrian conflict.
The ICMP and other organizations have long urged Syrian authorities to ensure transparency, impartiality, and family participation in the process.