Great News! Brother of Human Rights Activists Released in Syria

37-year-old businessman Yassin Ziadeh was arrested by members of the Syrian Air Force Intelligence on 30 August 2011 in Daraya, near the Syrian capital of Damascus. His family told Amnesty International after his arrest that he had not taken part in the on-going pro-reform protests and his detention was believed to be connected to his family relationship with his exiled brother, Radwan Ziadeh, who is based in the USA and is the President of the Damascus Centre for Human Rights Studies.

Yassin Ziadeh was released without charge and his family remains unclear about the reasons for both his arrest and release. His release could be related to a statement by the Syrian Ministry of Interior, which announced on 5 November the release of 553 detainees “who were involved in the events [referring to the unrest in Syria since mid-March] but whose hands were not stained with blood” but it is unclear whether the authorities counted him within these 553.

According to his family, he is now “in good health” and was not subjected to any torture while detained.