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| British Surgeon Reportedly Dies in Syrian Jail | British Surgeon Reportedly Dies in Syrian Jail |
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| LONDON — The British Foreign Office said on Tuesday it was “extremely concerned” about reports that a British doctor had died in detention in Syria and that it would hold the government of President Bashar al-Assad responsible if the reports proved true. | LONDON — The British Foreign Office said on Tuesday it was “extremely concerned” about reports that a British doctor had died in detention in Syria and that it would hold the government of President Bashar al-Assad responsible if the reports proved true. |
| Quoting the family of the surgeon, the BBC had reported earlier that the physician, Abbas Khan, 32, had been imprisoned for more than a year after traveling to the northern city of Aleppo to help treat civilians. | Quoting the family of the surgeon, the BBC had reported earlier that the physician, Abbas Khan, 32, had been imprisoned for more than a year after traveling to the northern city of Aleppo to help treat civilians. |
| His brother, Afroze Khan, 34, was quoted as saying the Syrian security agency had promised that he would be freed this week but when his mother went to visit him, she was told he had died. | His brother, Afroze Khan, 34, was quoted as saying the Syrian security agency had promised that he would be freed this week but when his mother went to visit him, she was told he had died. |
| “My brother was going to be released at the end of the week. We were given assurance by the Syrian government,” the brother was quoted as saying. “My brother knew that. He was ready to come back home. He was happy and looking forward to being released.” | “My brother was going to be released at the end of the week. We were given assurance by the Syrian government,” the brother was quoted as saying. “My brother knew that. He was ready to come back home. He was happy and looking forward to being released.” |
| Mr. Khan also criticized the Foreign Office, saying, “We are devastated, distraught and we are angry at the Foreign Office for dragging their feet for 13 months” since his brother’s arrest, only days after he arrived in Syria. | Mr. Khan also criticized the Foreign Office, saying, “We are devastated, distraught and we are angry at the Foreign Office for dragging their feet for 13 months” since his brother’s arrest, only days after he arrived in Syria. |
| In a statement, the Foreign Office said it was “urgently seeking clarification of this from the Syrian authorities. If these tragic reports are true, responsibility for Dr. Khan’s death lies with them and we will be pressing for answers about what happened. “ | In a statement, the Foreign Office said it was “urgently seeking clarification of this from the Syrian authorities. If these tragic reports are true, responsibility for Dr. Khan’s death lies with them and we will be pressing for answers about what happened. “ |
| “We have consistently sought consular access to Dr. Khan and information on his detention, directly and through the Russians, Czechs and others,” the statement said. Requests for information about his welfare, treatment and the reasons for his detention had “consistently been ignored,” the statement said. | “We have consistently sought consular access to Dr. Khan and information on his detention, directly and through the Russians, Czechs and others,” the statement said. Requests for information about his welfare, treatment and the reasons for his detention had “consistently been ignored,” the statement said. |
| Britain’s consular services in Syria were suspended as the civil war widened and the British government became one of the strongest European supporters of the rebels seeking to overthrow Mr. Assad’s government. | Britain’s consular services in Syria were suspended as the civil war widened and the British government became one of the strongest European supporters of the rebels seeking to overthrow Mr. Assad’s government. |
| According to the BBC, the physician had been held at the headquarters of Syria’s national security agency and his mother, Fatima Khan, had finally secured a promise of his release after spending four months in Damascus. But when she went to visit her son on Monday, she was told he was dead. The cause of death was not known, Dr. Khan’s brother said. | |
| When his mother visited him in prison on an earlier occasion, he weighed around 70 pounds, could hardly walk and said he had been tortured, according to the family. | When his mother visited him in prison on an earlier occasion, he weighed around 70 pounds, could hardly walk and said he had been tortured, according to the family. |