Even months after the disappearance of German journalist Eva Maria Michelmann and her Kurdish colleague Ahmed Polad, their fate remains unknown. In Qamishlo, activists renewed their call for their release and held Syria’s Islamist transitional government responsible for their abduction. A statement to this effect was read out in front of the United Nations (UN) office during a protest action organized by the Revolutionary Communist Women. Participants held up pictures of the two journalists and made their demands public.
“Eva Maria and Ahmed Polad are revolutionary journalists who carried the voice of the Rojava Revolution to the world and exposed the true face of the militias with evidence,” the statement said. They were last on duty in Raqqa on January 18, when they were reporting on the offensive of the Syrian transitional government against the autonomous administration areas. According to witness statements, they sought shelter with other civilians in a Kurdish youth center before being detained by Damascus forces while leaving and taken into a military vehicle. Since then, there has been no information about their whereabouts.”
“We know who abducted them”
“We have been searching for them for almost three months,” the statement continued. “A witness recently reported recognizing a high-ranking commander of the Syrian power apparatus during the transfer that night: Mohammed Abdulghani, head of the transitional government’s security authority in Aleppo.” The activists made it clear that they place responsibility squarely on Damascus. “We know who abducted them. Eva Maria and Ahmed were detained by you — you must release them.”
The demonstrators also spoke in particularly urgent terms about the danger facing the two. Referring to known patterns of violence, they stated: “We know the methods of these militias, especially in their treatment of women. We have not forgotten what they have done to women: violence, abuse, and humiliation. Therefore, the HTS government and its officials bear full responsibility for anything that may happen to Eva Maria.”
The statement also directly addressed the UN and other international organizations: “If women’s rights and human rights do not apply only to one part of the world, then international institutions must put pressure on the abductors. Do not turn a blind eye to war crimes.” At the same time, the activists criticized the international political normalization of the Islamists in Damascus, despite their known responsibility for serious war crimes.
“These forces that you accept as political partners must disclose the whereabouts of Eva Maria and Ahmed Polad,” the statement said. In conclusion, the participants reiterated their demands: “All hostages must be released. Eva Maria Michelmann and Ahmed Polad must be released. Those responsible must be held accountable.” The activists said they will continue their protest as long as the fate of the two journalists remains unknown.
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