Syrian “Gravedigger” Unmasks Identity, Exposes Assad’s Mass Killings

(MENAFN) A man from Syria, long referred to as the “gravedigger,” has stepped forward to reveal his true identity.

On Sunday, he publicly identified himself and provided further revelations concerning mass executions carried out by the deposed government of previous Leader Bashar al-Assad, as per a news agency.

Mohammed Afif Naifeh, a citizen of Damascus, disclosed his name during a presentation at the Arab Conference at Harvard University in the United States.

He reiterated his previous testimonies, which had already been presented before the United States Congress and the tribunal for Syrian war crimes in Germany, the agency noted.

The news agency stated that Naifeh’s testimony played a key role in uncovering organized atrocities committed by Assad’s ex-regime. These crimes included the secretive interment of thousands of torture victims, including children who had been killed under torture.

Between 2011 and 2018, Naifeh was responsible for burying the tortured victims in large, hidden graves before he ultimately escaped Syria, the agency explained.

In front of both the US legislative body and international courts, he detailed how lorries would arrive twice weekly from military hospitals and intelligence facilities.

Each vehicle contained the corpses of 300 to 600 individuals who had perished from torture, all slated for mass disposal, he testified.

Although Naifeh played a significant role in documenting the brutalities that led to global sanctions against Assad’s regime, he urged for those punitive measures to be removed.

He emphasized that, even after the collapse of the regime in December 2024, Syrians are still enduring hardship due to the ongoing economic restrictions.

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