The Hague, 23 May 2019:  Syrian organizations participating in a roundtable on the issue of missing persons from the conflict in Syria have highlighted the need to harmonize their efforts to advocate for unified policy positions on the issue of missing and disappeared persons from the Syrian conflict and to build cooperation between families of the missing, regardless of communal or national background.

The International Commission on Missing Persons (ICMP) organized the three-day conference at its Headquarters in The Hague this week to provide families and civil society organizations (CSOs) with a forum to articulate their needs and discuss effective advocacy to uphold families’ right to truth, justice and reparation. The roundtable examined the issue of Syrians who have been detained inside the country without access to family or legal representation, the need for an independent, impartial and centralized database that will enable a systematic effort to locate and identify…

The Hague, 7 May 2019: Germany’s Ambassador to the Netherlands, Dirk Brengelmann, has accepted an invitation to become a Commissioner of the International Commission on Missing Persons (ICMP). Ambassador Brengelmann will take up his position forthwith and will participate at the annual meeting of the Board of Commissioners at ICMP Headquarters in The Hague in mid-June.

“I am very honored by and accept the invitation of ICMP to participate in their work as Commissioner.

I have had a chance to observe ICMP activitie‎s for quite some time now and I am impressed by their engagement and commitment. I am looking forward to cooperating with my fellow Commissioners in this important endeavor,” Ambassador Brengelmann said.

“We are delighted to welcome Ambassador Brengelmann,” the Chair of ICMP’s Board of Commissioners, Thomas Miller, said today. “ICMP has worked with the German Government on a number of programs around the world and engages on a range…