Syria: Sniffer dogs, engineering experts deployed as Sednaya prison's underground cells remain unbreached | VIDEOS

Throughout the civil war that began in 2011, Bashar al-Assad's security forces held hundreds of thousands of people in detention camps across Syria. Kids born in these facilities have never seen the light of the day while many men were put in solitary confinement in underground cells, reports said. 

ALSO READ | Is ISIS still active? US prevents Islamic State from filling Syria vacuum; Israel strikes Assad's chemical weapons

After the HTS-led militia seized control of Damascus, forcing Assad to flee, breaking free prisons across the cities became an important objective. Torture and hangings were carried out in the "Sednaya jail", the most notorious of the lot, which included peaceful protestors who opposed the Syrian regime as well as fighters who supported several of the rebel factions in the region. 

When they reached Sednaya prison, rebels shot the lock off the gate, a video showed, using more gunfire to open closed doors leading to cells. A video verified by Reuters showed newly freed prisoners ran through the Damascus streets.

Located about 30 kilometres away from the Syrian capital, Sednaya jail is said to be much bigger than the Rikers Island facility in New York -- often referred to as the world's largest penal colony.

However, the rebel fighters have not yet managed to free the entire population imprisoned in this facility. Sednaya got layers of underground levels which were being used as hidden cells by Assad. Those freed by fighters told HTS fighters that they will have to dig deep to save the inmates, who may have not received any supplies since the pro-government forces fled. 

ALSO READ | As Bashar al-Assad and family flee to Moscow, Syrians celebrate 'fall of the tyrant'

There were unconfirmed reports on social media that CCTV footage from the command room had confirmed the presence of more people in these underground facilities. But the access points to these layers were either unknown or unbreachable, these reports said.

Syria’s White Helmets,  a volunteer organisation that operates in parts of opposition-controlled regions, confirmed the situation on social media. Modern electronic locks and concealed doors were making the rescue effort difficult. Sniffer dogs and wall-breaching specialists were being pushed into action to support the search and rescue units at Sednaya, they added.

There have been public requests to former Assad officials to reveal the security pass codes so that the trapped inmates could be freed at the earliest.

"Three underground floors of Sednaya prison remain unaccessible. Thousands of people are trapped in their cells, as their families scramble to locate secret entry points to help free them. Calls on HR organisations to intervene growing louder," a post on X said. 

"If the international community wants to rescue some credibility with #Syria’s people, it should send specialists to #Sednaya Prison in #Damascus immediately — there are 100s, possibly 1000s of prisoners stuck 2-3 layers underground, behind electronic locks & concealed doors," another post read.

The United States said in 2017 it had evidence of a new crematorium built at Sednaya especially to dispose of bodies of thousands of inmates hanged during the war.Some of the most disturbing information about Assad's prison system came with thousands of photographs smuggled out of Syria by a military photographer codenamed Caesar who defected to the West in 2013.