Ziad Wasef Ramadan, 33, is a Syrian national from Homs, who worked for a computer software company in Lebanon.

On 14 September 2009, Alkarama sent an appeal to the Working Group on Arbitrary Detention (WGAD) asking it to intervene with the Syrian authorities in order that he be released or brought to justice, by issuing an Opinion declaring his detention as arbitrary. This is in follow up to an urgent appeal sent by the WGAD and the Special Rapporteur on the Independence of Judges and Lawyers on 16 October 2008 to the Syrian authorities.

Arrest and detention

Mr. Ramadan was initially suspected by Lebanese authorities of involvement in former Lebanese prime minister Rafik Al-Hariri's assassination based on his connection to Mr. Abu Adass (with whom he had previously worked in a software company), who confessed in a video statement of being responsible for the assassination. However, in 2005, the UN Fact-Finding Mission to Lebanon in charge of former president Al-Hariri's assassination concluded that there was little evidence to believe Mr Abu Addass' statement.

In March 2005, subsequent to his initial meeting with Lebanese authorities, Mr Ramadan, fearing torture and ill-treatment, decided to make his way back to Syria after hearing that Lebanese Military Intelligence wanted to speak with him. When he got back to Syria, he was summoned by Syrian Military Intelligence for questioning. Mr. Ramadan, accompanied by his lawyer, Haitham Al-Maleh (a prominent Syrian human rights defender), presented himself voluntarily to their office in Damascus. Up until Mr Ramadan's summons, the Syrian Military Intelligence services had been holding his uncle for 24 hours, during which time they forced him to sign a blank paper warning him that he would be detained if Mr Ramadan did not surrender himself. Ziad Ramadan was eventually blindfolded and taken into custody without being presented with a warrant or informed of the reasons for his arrest. The Intelligence services had promised his lawyer, Mr Al-Maleh, that Mr Ramadan would only be questioned for a couple of hours, however he did not return. It appears that his detention was ordered by the Head of Military Forces, Mr. Asef Shawkat, in order to be questioned in the investigation into Al-Hariri's assassination.

After his arrest his family did not hear from him for six months, until January 2006, when they learned that he had been transferred to the main prison in Homs City and that he had previously been detained in the Palestinian Branch prison in Damascus.

During his time at Homs prison, Mr. Ramadan was able to receive visits from his family. However, in September 2007, he was once again transferred back to the Palestinian Brach prison where he is presumably detained to date. His family last saw him on 22 September 2007 at the Palestinian Branch prison. Since then, his family has not received any replies to their queries about his whereabouts or his wellbeing. They are becoming increasingly distressed about Mr Ramadan's current situation, as he has been imprisoned for more than four years without any legal basis. Mr Ramadan's personal lawyer was refused by Syrian authorities, who have assigned their own lawyers to his case. These lawyers have never met with Mr. Ramadan to date.

Recent news

Finally, in early August 2009, his family learned that Syrian authorities were allowing relatives to visit the Palestinian Branch prison. They applied for visitation, but on 18 August they received information that their request had been refused.

There remain deep concerns, amongst the international community, with regards to continuing reports of torture and cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment in Syria notably in the Palestinian Branch prison. Fears are that Mr. Ramadan is exposed to this type of treatment and being held in prolonged incommunicado detention, causing him serious and long term physical and mental harm.