Journalist Polad transferred to Turkey after 8 months of torture in interim Govt. prisons

Syrian transitional government forces arrested journalist Ahmed Polad, along with his German colleague Maria Michelman, on January 18 in the city of Raqqa. Since then, no information about him had been available for the past eight months.

According to information obtained by ANHA agency from Polad’s family, the Syrian transitional government handed him over to Turkey on September 9.

After being transferred to Turkey, Ahmed Polad told his family that he had been subjected to severe torture throughout the eight months he spent in prisons run by the transitional government. He said he had gone on a hunger strike throughout this period in protest against the torture he was subjected to.

According to his family, Polad’s health deteriorated, and he became ill as a result of the detention conditions and torture he endured during his imprisonment.

The family said Turkish authorities transferred Ahmed Polad to Metris Prison in Istanbul.

Ahmed Polad has worked in media in Rojava and Syria since 2017 and is a member of the Free Media Union. He also worked for ETHA news agency and Ozgur TV starting in 2016. More recently, he served as an editor and writer for the Kurdistana Azad website, which was established in 2025.

Polad was arrested along with German journalist Maria Michelman, born in 1989, who has worked as a correspondent in Rojava and North and East Syria since 2022.

Michelman prepared reports for media outlets including ETHA and Ozgur TV, covering developments on the ground, attacks on cities and towns, and issues related to the Rojava Revolution.

Michelman was transferred from prisons in Aleppo to a prison in Damascus before being released in mid-June. She subsequently returned to her home country through efforts by the German Embassy.

Ahmed Polad, meanwhile, remained in prisons run by the transitional government until he was handed over to Turkey days ago.

A-H

ANHA