Syrian man 'freed' by CNN reporters from notorious prison is Assad regime henchman: report

CNN’s chief international correspondent Clarissa Ward is facing criticism that she may have freed a henchman of the Assad regime from prison after a man locked in a cell gave the media team a false name, according to a new report. CNN is now investigating to find his real identity.

During a segment that aired on Wednesday, Ward and her team reported from a secret Syrian prison, and said they were looking for American journalist Austin Tice, who in 2012 disappeared in the country. They found a locked cell and asked a guard to open it and, when they entered, found a man inside under a blanket. He asked for water and said his name was Adel Gharbal from Homs and claimed to be unaware of the fall of Basha al-Assad. He later left with the Red Crescent.

Ward shared the segment on X and wrote, “In nearly twenty years as a journalist, this was one of the most extraordinary moments I have witnessed.”

On Sunday, Abdul-Salam Al-Hamwi, a writer for Verify-Sy, an outlet that claims to be an “independent and unbiased platform specialized in fact-checking in Syria,” reported that Gharbal “claimed he had not seen sunlight for three months. However, his reaction to the light did not match such a claim—he did not flinch or blink even when gazing up at the sky, seemingly overjoyed at his newfound ‘freedom.’”

In the piece, titled, “Did CNN Fabricate the Story of "Freeing a Prisoner from a Secret Jail?” he added, “Despite the purported harsh treatment of detainees in secret prisons, Gharbal appeared clean, well-groomed, and physically healthy, with no visible injuries or signs of torture—an incongruous portrayal of someone allegedly held in solitary confinement in the dark for 90 days.”

His team couldn’t find the man in a records search and claimed he name is Salama Mohammad Salama, who is also known as Abu Hamza, a first lieutenant in Syrian Air Force Intelligence.

Al-Hamwi stated, “Residents of the Al-Bayyada neighborhood identified him as frequently stationed at a checkpoint in the area’s western entrance, infamous for its abuses,” adding Salama’s possible offenses include that he “reportedly managed several security checkpoints in Homs and was involved in theft, extortion, and coercing residents into becoming informants.”

A spokesperson for CNN told TheWrap, “We have subsequently been investigating his background and are aware that he may have given a false identity.”

The TV network said in a statement, “No one other than the CNN team was aware of our plans to visit the prison building featured in our report that day. The events transpired as they appear in our film. The decision to release the prisoner featured in our report was taken by the guard – a Syrian rebel.”

The statement added, “We reported the scene as it unfolded, including what the prisoner told us, with clear attribution. We have subsequently been investigating his background and are aware that he may have given a false identity. We are continuing our reporting into this and the wider story.”