Syria says nearly 140,000 people still missing

ISTANBUL

Syria said Tuesday that nearly 140,000 people are still missing in the war-torn country.

“The number of missing persons in Syria is 140,000, according to human rights organizations,” Emergency and Disasters Minister Raid Al-Saleh told a press conference in Damascus, as cited by the state news agency SANA.

He said there are indications about mass graves in Syria.

“However, there are no statistics on the number of these graves,” Saleh added.

The Syrian minister announced the integration of the rescue service known as the White Helmets into the Emergency and Disasters Ministry.

Bashar al-Assad, Syria’s leader for nearly 25 years, fled to Russia in December, ending the Baath Party’s regime, which had been in power since 1963.

Ahmed al-Sharaa, who led anti-regime forces to oust Assad, was declared president for a transitional period in January.