On 26 January 2016, Sami Joudat Rabah was murdered in Deiz ez-Zor. Rabah was a 28 year old journalist and political analyst who also worked for the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights. In this capacity he documented human rights violations in Syria throughout the course of the civil war while also working as an independent journalist.

When Deiz ez-Zor fell to Daesh, Rabah chose to remain in the city and continue his work as an unaffiliated journalist despite threats. He was targeted by Daesh who accused him of “treason” and working with the West by giving information and coordinates to hostile groups. In a brutal execution Rabah was tied to a table with his laptop, which was then loaded with explosives and detonated.

On the same day Daesh executed four other journalists in the city of Deiz ez-Zor in similarly cruel fashion.