British-Syrian activist Hassan Akkad has been freed from a Damascus prison after four days in detention on allegations of criticizing public figures. His organization confirmed the release on June 21.
Akkad was arrested at a café in the al-Maliki district of Damascus at 9:45 p.m. local time on June 18. He is the founder of the campaign “Give Us the Money That You Owe!,” which tracks major financial commitments from public figures in fundraising for Syria’s reconstruction.
The detention stemmed from a lawsuit filed by Syrian journalist and broadcaster Mousa al-Omar, related to “Hassan’s activities and comments on social media” after Akkad criticized al-Omar for not fulfilling a financial pledge in a fundraising drive. Prosecutor Hossam Khattab confirmed Akkad was held pending arrest warrants for failing to appear before the Cybercrime Control Directorate, and there were other lawsuits for slander and defamation.
On June 22, Akkad was released after al-Omar told Al Jazeera that he had instructed his lawyer to withdraw the complaint. Al-Omar also posted on social media platform X: “My legal representative has withdrawn the rights and the case against my brother Hassan this morning and forgave him for the sake of God Almighty… I am saddened by what he has brought upon himself, and I wish him success in his social media activities, and I will always support him.”
Akkad, also a filmmaker, was previously imprisoned twice by President Bashar al-Assad’s regime for documenting anti-government protests in 2011. After leaving Syria, he spent time in the Middle East before undertaking an 87-day journey across Europe to reach the United Kingdom in September 2015. Video of his arduous journey was featured in the BAFTA-winning documentary series Exodus: Our Journey to Europe.
