The National Commission for Missing Persons in Syria has signed an official memorandum of understanding with the International Commission on Missing Persons (ICMP) to strengthen technical and professional cooperation on the issue of missing persons.
The agreement, announced Monday on the Commission’s Telegram channel, is framed within an institutional approach that respects national sovereignty and upholds standards of justice, transparency, and data protection.
The memorandum sets out cooperation to share expertise and build Syria’s capacities in investigations, forensic science, DNA analysis, and managing missing persons data. It also supports programs to help families understand their rights. Syrian staff will receive training in search and identification methods based on international best practices, while work will continue on a central national database and secure access to ICMP’s collected data.
Syrian experts will also benefit from ICMP’s advanced forensic and DNA capabilities, and joint workshops will involve families directly. The agreement encourages regional and international collaboration on missing migrants and unidentified remains and aims to create a national system aligned with global standards.
The Commission called the memorandum a key step toward building a reliable national system to determine the fate of missing persons, improve accountability, and strengthen cooperation with international partners. It reaffirmed its ongoing efforts to clarify the fate of all missing persons, ease the suffering of families, and reinforce public trust in the institutions handling this sensitive issue.
On November 5, the National Commission signed a joint declaration of principles with ICMP, the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), and the International Independent Commission for Missing Persons (IIMP), supporting the national effort to clarify the fate and whereabouts of all missing persons in Syria, regardless of the circumstances of their disappearance or affiliations.
