Up First from NPR Syria's Missing Children
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May 4, 2025 
Diaa Hadid, an NPR correspondent who reported from Damascus, sheds light on the heartbreaking reality of Syria's missing children during the ongoing civil war. She emotionally recounts the struggles of mothers separated from their children by security forces, revealing the urgent search for answers that continues today. The discussion explores the role of organizations like UNICEF, the complexities of orphanhood, and alarming possibilities like human trafficking. Hadid emphasizes the need for greater awareness of this tragic situation affecting countless families.
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Shbawi's Ordeal and Reunion
- Sukaina Shbawi was detained with her two-year-old daughter Heba in a cold, dark cell in 2018.
- After months, the child was taken away but later returned to her mother, though Heba grew distant emotionally.
Hidden 'Security Placement' Children
- Thousands of children were taken from their detained mothers by Assad forces, many still missing.
- Syrian orphanages held "security placement children" under secret orders from intelligence agents.
Defining Orphans in Syria
- In Syria, a child is considered an orphan if the father is dead, not necessarily if the mother is.
- Mothers sometimes give children to orphanages for societal or financial reasons, different from western conceptions.