Razan Zaitouneh facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Razan Zaitouneh
رزان زيتونة
Undated picture of Razan Zaitouneh
Born	(1977-04-29)29 April 1977 Syria
Disappeared	9 December 2013 (aged 36) Douma, Syria
Status	Missing for 11 years, 6 months and 19 days
Education	Law degree
Occupation	Human rights lawyer
Organization	Local Coordination Committees of Syria, Violations Documentation Center in Syria
Known for	human rights activism during the civil uprising and early insurgency phases of the Syrian Civil War

Razan Zaitouneh (born April 29, 1977) is a Syrian human rights lawyer and activist. She became well-known for her work during the Syrian uprising that began in 2011. Razan documented human rights issues in Syria for groups like the Local Coordination Committees of Syria. She had to go into hiding because the government accused her of working against them. Her husband was also arrested. Razan Zaitouneh was kidnapped on December 9, 2013, and her location is still unknown. Many people believe she may no longer be alive.

Early Life and Education

Razan Zaitouneh finished law school in Damascus in 1999. She started working as a lawyer in 2001.

Working for Human Rights

Since 2001, Razan has been part of a team of lawyers who defend political prisoners. In the same year, she helped start the Human Rights Association in Syria (HRAS).

In 2005, Razan Zaitouneh created the Syrian Human Rights Information Link (SHRIL). Through SHRIL, she continued to report on human rights problems in Syria. From 2005 until her disappearance in 2013, Razan was also an active member of the Committee to Support Families of Political Prisoners in Syria.

On March 23, 2011, Syrian State television announced that Razan Zaitouneh was a "foreign agent." After this, she went into hiding to avoid being arrested. However, she kept doing her important legal and human rights work.

In April 2011, Razan founded the Violations Documentation Center in Syria. This center's job was to record human rights violations and abuses happening in the country, no matter who was responsible. She also helped write reports about human rights issues for the Local Coordination Committees of Syria, which she helped create.

Her husband, Wael Hamadeh, was arrested on May 12, 2011. His brother was also arrested. Wael Hamadeh was questioned in prison about his wife's human rights work. He was released on August 1, 2011.

Awards and Recognition

Razan Zaitouneh received several important awards for her brave work:

• On October 27, 2011, she was given the 2011 Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought. She shared this award with four other people from Arab countries.
• She also received the Anna Politkovskaya Award from an organization called Reach All Women in War.
• In 2013, Razan Zaitouneh was honored with the International Women of Courage Award.

Disappearance in 2013

On December 9, 2013, news websites that supported the opposition reported that Razan Zaitouneh had been kidnapped. She was taken along with her husband, Wael Hamadeh, and two friends, Samira Khalil and Nazem Hammadi. This happened in Douma, a town near Damascus that was controlled by opposition groups.

As of August 2018, the Associated Press (AP) did not have clear proof about what happened to Razan. However, there were clues that suggested a group called Jaysh al-Islam might have held her in a prison. Jaysh al-Islam denied this. One clue was a message seen by several people on a prison cell wall that said, "I miss my mother – Razan Zaitouneh, 2016." Another clue was that a computer taken with Razan in 2013 was used from a Jaysh al-Islam internet address at the prison. The AP believed it was likely that Razan Zaitouneh had been killed.

In February 2020, one of the Syrian intelligence agencies announced they found a mass grave with about 70 bodies. They thought one of the bodies might be Razan Zaitouneh.

In 2020, French authorities arrested a person named Majdi Mustapha Nameh in connection with Razan Zaitouneh's disappearance.

In March 2021, a formal complaint was filed in France by human rights groups. They held Jaysh al-Islam responsible for her kidnapping.

In July 2022, a report by Deutsche Welle shared another clue. Two months after Razan was taken, a member of Jaysh al-Islam used her computer to log into his social media accounts. This computer had been given to Razan through a project funded by the United States Department of State, which allowed the user's location to be found. The investigation suggested that two local Jaysh al-Islam leaders might have planned the kidnapping. When the leader of Jaysh al-Islam at the time, Zahran Alloush, found out about the kidnapping, he tried to make a deal to free Razan and the others. However, Zahran Alloush was killed in an airstrike. His cousin, who took over as leader, refused to continue the talks for a deal.

See also

In Spanish: Razan Zaitouneh para niños

• Mazen Darwish
• Samira Khalil
• Human rights in Syria
• List of kidnappings
• List of people who disappeared