German journalist released after months in Syrian custody
Eva Maria Michelmann returned from Jordan after being detained in Raqqa in January, while a Kurdish colleague remains missing, her family said.
By Lucas Ferreira · Science & Environment Writer
2 min read
German journalist Eva Maria Michelmann has been released after months in detention in Syria, her family told the dpa news agency. Her return closes one part of a case that also involves Kurdish journalist Ahmed Polad, whose whereabouts remain unknown, according to Michelmann’s brother.
Antonius Michelmann told dpa that his sister arrived from Jordan on Friday after being held since her arrest in Raqqa on January 18. He said she was in good condition considering what she had been through, but added that she had spent a long period in solitary confinement.
Al Jazeera and AFP reported that Michelmann is from Cologne and had worked in Syria as a freelance journalist since 2002, citing her family. The Syrian Ministry of Information previously said she was arrested during a military operation in Raqqa.
Polad, a Kurdish journalist and Turkish citizen, was detained at the same time, according to the Syrian ministry and Michelmann’s family. Antonius Michelmann said there was still no trace of him.
Arrest in Raqqa
The Syrian Information Ministry said last month that Michelmann was arrested during a raid on a building linked to the Syrian Democratic Forces, or SDF. According to the ministry’s account, fighters had barricaded themselves inside the building and everyone present was taken into custody.
The ministry said two foreign nationals were arrested in the same operation. It also said Michelmann first claimed to be a Spanish citizen working for an organisation connected to the United Nations, but that a UN inquiry found no staff members missing in the area.
Syrian officials later established that she was a German journalist, the ministry said. The ministry also alleged that Michelmann and her companion tried to escape custody.
Raqqa had been governed by the SDF and the Kurdish-led Democratic Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria from 2017 until January 2026, according to Al Jazeera and AFP. Power in the city and most of the surrounding province was handed to Syrian government forces led by President Ahmed al-Sharaa in January.
Consular effort
German magazine Der Spiegel reported that Germany’s embassy in Damascus provided Michelmann with consular assistance. The magazine said the Damascus mission, working with the German embassy in Beirut, pressed the Syrian government to release her.
Michelmann’s family has not reported a similar resolution for Polad. Antonius Michelmann’s statement that there is still no trace of the Kurdish journalist leaves his status unresolved months after the Raqqa arrests.
This story draws on original reporting from Al Jazeera.