Cologne, April 27, (dpa/GNA) – Relatives of a German journalist believed to be jailed in Syria, called on Chancellor Friedrich Merz on Monday to campaign for her release.
In an open letter, 160 signatories appealed for Merz, along with German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, to join the effort to free Eva Maria Michelmann.
The Cologne native has been missing in Syria for three months, and is allegedly being held in a prison in Aleppo. The German Foreign Office last week said it has been able to establish contact with her.
Investigations by the family’s lawyers suggest she was arrested on January 18 along with her Turkish-Kurdish colleague Ahmet Polad by forces linked to the Syrian transitional government.
The journalist’s mother, Rotraut Hake-Michelmann, said at a press conference in Cologne on Monday that she was relieved that her daughter was still alive.
However, she added that there had been nothing but “fine words” from the Foreign Office so far. “They must be followed by action,” she added, warning of “empty phrases” from the German government.
Michelmann’s brother, Antonius Michelmann, said that to his knowledge the German government has not yet raised the case at the highest level.
“We expect the German government to make this a top priority. It is incomprehensible to us how the German government can cooperate with such a regime without a word of criticism.”
He slammed the “red-carpet treatment” offered to Syria’s interim president, Ahmed al-Sharaa, during his visit to Berlin in late March.
According to reports, Michelmann had been working in Syria as a freelance journalist since 2022 and campaigned for women’s rights.
GNA