Syrians continue to go missing at the hands of the armed groups that have taken control over some parts of Syrian territory. The objective of the Islamic State (IS) is to intimidate the Syrian community, with abduction as its main tool of terror.

Shaha Mohammed lost her son, Aker, 17, during the attack on the city of Kobani. Aker had joined the Kurdish People's Protection Units (YPG) to defend Kobani. She told Al-Monitor, “It’s been a while since we have heard something about him. We have not been able to communicate with him, although all his friends have communicated with their families. We just want to know what has happened to him. Had he lost his life, we would have known. We have not heard from him and we have been experiencing significant emotional suffering. We will do anything to get any news about him. He is my eldest son.”

IS has not limited itself to the abduction of civilians; it has also tried to oppress freedom of speech and prevent journalists from reporting. It has abducted journalists in the field and threatened to behead or burn them, as is the case with Kurdish journalists Farhad Hamo and Massoud Aqeel, who were abducted in December 2014.

Kurdish journalist Faruq Haji Mustafa told Al-Monitor, "IS has adopted a policy of terror by beheading hostages. The reason behind the abduction and beheading of journalists is perhaps to scare and displace them from their areas, so that the only available news coverage would be broadcast and published directly by IS. Countries have begun to advise their citizens to avoid IS-controlled areas, particularly since the beheading of US journalist James Foley and others.”