On February 14, 2024, a small team of GHRD members visited a panel discussion that was held to highlight the hardships faced by Syrian women during the conflict in Syria. The event focused on the severe injustices they have suffered, including being killed, imprisoned, and subjected to sexual violence. A new report by the Syrian Network for Human Rights was revealed, exploring the effects of these injustices on women, their strength in adversity, the help they need, and how the global community can assist them. The event also featured a special exhibition of portraits focusing on women who have gone missing, underlining the ongoing problem of enforced disappearances in Syria and its impact on the return of refugees.

A report titled “Unshakable Voices: Syrian Women Who Overcame the Trauma of Detention and the Tribulations Following Their Release” was highlighted during the event. The report also focused on the struggles of Syrian women, including lack of access to documentation, complicated property rights, and a lack of a legal framework for restitution and compensation.

The event was organized by the Syrian Network for Human Rights (SNHR) and featured interviews with survivors of forced disappearance. The report highlighted the gender-based context of the conflict and the lack of due process and legal avenues for holding perpetrators accountable. According to the SNHR, at least 10,197 women are detained or forcibly disappeared by the parties to the conflict and controlling forces in Syria.

The panelists welcomed the creation of the Independent Institution on Missing Persons in the Syrian Arab Republic (IIMP), which will be fully functional by 2025, aiming to clarify the whereabouts of missing persons and provide adequate support to victims, survivors, and their families. At the end of the event, attendees walked through an exhibition of portraits of missing women, whose fates remain unknown.