Ghiath was arrested on 6 September 2011 by the security forces of the Syrian government.[1] Four days later, his body was returned to his family with scars and sores resulting from severe torture.[2] His funeral was attended by the ambassadors of the United States,[3] Japan, Germany, France and Denmark. When Ghiath died, his wife was expecting their first baby.[4] The baby was named after his father.
Ghiath Matar became a symbol of peaceful resistance of the Syrian revolution.[5]
A documentary on Matar, by the filmmaker Sam Kadi, Little Gandhi, was a winner at the Independent European Film Festival in April 2016, winning the Ahmed Khedr Award for Excellence in Arab Filmmaking.[6]
