Eight Years Since the Abduction of Activist Fouad Ibrahim by PYD Militants in Derik

ARK News.. Today, Monday, March 24, 2025, marks the eighth anniversary of the abduction of youth activist Fouad Ibrahim by militants of the Democratic Union Party (PYD) in the countryside of Derik, Syrian Kurdistan. His fate remains unknown, and no information about his whereabouts has surfaced to this day.

The Incident
On March 24, 2017, PYD militants abducted Fouad Ibrahim in an area between the villages of Mamshour and Shakir Khaji in the countryside of Derik. Despite continuous efforts to uncover his fate, all attempts have failed as the PYD has consistently denied responsibility for his disappearance.

Who is Fouad Ibrahim?
Fouad Ibrahim became involved in the Kurdish political movement in Syria in the late 1980s. He was an active participant in protests and demonstrations in his hometown, Derik, during the early stages of the Syrian revolution.

He later became a member of the Kurdish National Council (KNC) in Syria and was elected as a member of its General Secretariat. When the Kurdish Supreme Committee was established in 2012 following the Duhok Agreement between the PYD administration and the KNC, he was chosen as a member of this body.

Fouad had previously been detained multiple times by both the Syrian regime's security forces and PYD militants due to his political activism and participation in protests against the Syrian regime.

On October 2, 2016, Fouad Ibrahim was abducted alongside local council member Walid Farman while distributing invitations for a local council event. Upon his release, PYD militants reportedly threatened him with execution if he continued his political activities and youth activism.

According to information obtained by ARK Media Foundation, Fouad Ibrahim endured severe torture in one of the PYD's detention centers. His health deteriorated to the extent that he had to be transferred to a hospital for urgent medical treatment.

On March 24, 2017, he was abducted once again by PYD militants near the villages of Mamshour and Shakir Khaji in the countryside of Derik. Since then, there has been no information about his fate.

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