The Commission for the Missing Begins the Recovery of the Remains of the Victims of the Solidarity Massacre
The National Commission for Missing Persons in Syria has begun excavation and search work at the site of the Tadamon massacre in the city of Damascus, in preparation for exhuming the remains of the victims who were executed in the field by Amjad Youssef, as documented by previous investigations.
The Action Group for the Palestinians of Syria said that the security forces imposed a tight cordon around the area, with a prohibition on approaching or filming, and prohibiting live media coverage during the course of operations, in light of the sensitivity of the site and the ongoing procedures inside it.
According to the "working group", the body of 12 people, including children, has been found so far, while the search and excavation operations are still ongoing under the supervision of a specialized team that includes doctors and experts who have received training from international bodies and experts in the fields of forensic research, forensics and dealing with mass graves.
Follow-up sources expected the exhumation of the remains to continue for several more days, in conjunction with documentation and field examination work inside the site, amid measures aimed at preserving evidence and ensuring legal and humanitarian standards in dealing with the victims.
Field Assessment of the "Solidarity Pit" in Damascus
A few days ago, the National Authority for Missing Persons conducted a field assessment of the site containing the mass grave, with the aim of identifying the needs necessary to start the response work, in accordance with professional and legal standards that ensure the protection of evidence and the preservation of the dignity of the victims.
The Commission stressed that dealing with the file of the solidarity massacre is being dealt with within a precise humanitarian and legal approach, and in coordination with the concerned authorities and relevant partners, in order to ensure access to the truth and support the path of justice, calling for reliance on official sources in the transfer of information due to the sensitivity and accuracy of the ongoing procedures.
Solidarity Massacre
The Tadamon massacre took place on April 16, 2013, and killed 41 civilians, and their bodies were thrown into a large pit in the Damascus neighborhood of Tadamon by the forces of the former regime, and human bones were later found in the area, according to what the media monitored on December 20, 2024.
On April 27, 2022, the British newspaper "The Guardian" published a video clip showing the forces of the "Branch 227" of the regime's military intelligence killing at least 41 people and burning their bodies in the Tadamon neighborhood, and in the clip, "Youssef", whose face was clearly visible in the photos, was seen shooting at civilians who were arrested blindfolded and handcuffed.
The Ministry of Interior arrests the first suspect in the massacre
The Ministry of Interior announced in a statement published on its official IDs on Friday, April 24, 2026, that "the criminal Amjad Youssef, the first accused of committing the Tadamon massacre, was arrested by the Internal Security Forces, during a security operation carried out in the countryside of Hama."
The ministry added that "the monitoring and tracking operations continued for several days before implementation in the Al-Ghab plain in Hama countryside, as part of a careful and continuous follow-up," stressing that it will continue to pursue the rest of the perpetrators of the massacre, to arrest them and bring them to justice.
For his part, Interior Minister Anas Khattab wrote a post on his account on the "X" platform: "The criminal Amjad Youssef, the first accused of committing the Tadamon massacre, is in our custody after a tight security operation."
Criminal Youssef: "I did not receive orders from anyone"
In a video released by the Ministry of Interior on Saturday (April 25th), which included scenes from the initial investigations with the criminal Amjad Youssef, the latter admitted to his participation in carrying out a mass murder in the Tadamon neighborhood of Damascus, stressing that he was the person who appeared in the video that documented what was later known as the "Al-Hafra massacre" or the Tadamon massacre.
He added that the massacre was carried out without the presence of other elements, and that he was the one who carried out the shooting, while his companion, Najib al-Halabi, was involved in it "until the completion of the mission".
After the killings, they used to put tires on top and under the bodies and set them on fire to hide the smells, he said, before the pit was later filled.
As for responsibility, Youssef said he bears responsibility for what happened "personally," denying that he had received direct orders from any officer or military commander, but clarified that the selection of the victims was not an individual decision, but was based on reports accusing them of being associated with armed groups.