Damascus, March 5 (SANA) The remains of 14 people were discovered in the Adra industrial area northeast of Damascus after workers uncovered bones during construction work, the Syrian Civil Defense said on Wednesday.
According to the Civil Defense, teams specializing in missing persons cases responded Monday to a report that bones had been found while excavation was underway to prepare foundations for a mill in the industrial zone.
Search teams, working in coordination with the National Commission for the Missing, the public prosecutor, and security authorities, began recovery operations at the site.
Before the search started, teams from the National Mine Action Center surveyed the area to ensure it was clear of landmines and unexploded ordnance, the Civil Defense said.
Recovery operations continued over two days. On Monday, teams found remains of four individuals, which were scattered due to earlier mechanical digging at the site. On Tuesday, they recovered remains of 10 additional individuals.
The remains were documented and collected according to forensic procedures before being handed over to relevant authorities for further investigation and identification.
The Civil Defense urged residents not to approach or disturb sites where human remains or suspected mass graves are found, warning that tampering with such locations could damage forensic evidence needed to identify victims and determine the circumstances of their deaths.
Authorities have discovered several mass graves in different parts of the country in recent months containing the remains of Syrians who died due to practices of the deposed regime. The Syrian Network for Human Rights says nearly 177,000 people have been forcibly disappeared in Syria since March 2011.
