Missing Persons Investigator

Title: Missing Persons Investigator

Location: Remote

POSITION: Consultant

REPORTS TO: Senior Program Officer

About SJAC

Founded in 2012, The Syria Justice and Accountability Centre (SJAC) is a nonprofit organization dedicated to promoting meaningful justice for Syria that holds perpetrators accountable and addresses the grievances of victims, leading to lasting peace and respect for human rights.

Position Summary

The Syria Justice and Accountability Centre (SJAC)’s missing persons program is focused on discovering the fates of those who have gone missing in Northeast Syria at the hands of ISIS. SJAC is seeking an Investigative Lead to coordinate missing persons investigations between SJAC’s various field teams and develop appropriate analysis methodologies. SJAC anticipates that this individual will work approximately 20 hours/week.

General Duties:

· Collaborate with SJAC’s analysis team and external partners to develop analysis methodologies for missing persons documentation.

· Provide direction to SJAC’s field and open-source contextual investigation teams, identifying leads and developing appropriate workplans.

· Identify relevant patterns and build hypotheses based on SJAC’s data, providing regular updates to the larger missing persons team on findings.

· Work with external partners to ensure appropriate coordination and data sharing.

Skills and Experience

· Bachelors degree in relevant field (international affairs, human rights etc.), MA or PhD preferred.

· Experience conducting research projects required, including setting research plans, creating appropriate methodologies, and identifying and analyzing documentation from diverse sources. Experience conducting research for the purposes of human rights advocacy or investigations preferred.

· Experience working on the Middle East, specifically the Syrian conflict. Familiarity with ISIS in Syria and/or Iraq and associated crimes preferred. Knowledge or experience in missing persons investigations a plus.

· Strong written and oral communication skills

· Professional proficiency in Arabic is required. Successful candidates must be able to communicate fluently about sensitive, technical topics in both written and spoken (Levantine) Arabic.