• Yusuf Zahab, 17, died of “uncertain causes” in the Al-Sinaa jail in northeast Syria.
• His family has called for the release of other women and children who were also in jail.
• Australia’s Foreign Affairs Department is extending consular assistance to the family.

SYDNEY: A three-year detainee from Australia is believed to have died in a Syrian prison, his family claimed Monday as they called for the release of other imprisoned women and children.

Yusuf Zahab, 17, died of “uncertain causes” in the Al-Sinaa jail in northeast Syria, according to Human Rights Watch.

Kurdish-led forces have detained Islamic State suspects in a jail that was the scene of fierce combat between IS fighters and US-backed soldiers earlier this year.

“We are heartbroken and angry,” the family of Zahab said in a statement posted by Human Rights Watch.

“Yusuf didn’t need to die. The previous Australian Government knew about Yusuf’s predicament for more than three years,” they added to it.

Also Read

US claims an attack in Syria killed the leader of ISIS

Maher al-Agal was one of the top four ISIS leaders overall, U.S....

Born in Sydney, Zahab was 11 years old when he was transferred by his family to Syria, where he was detained by the Syrian Democratic Forces in 2019.

In audio messages leaked by a human rights group, he begged for help and claimed to see fellow juvenile detainees slaughtered during a prison raid.

He had stated, “There’s a lot of bodies, dead bodies, and there’s a lot of injured people screaming from pain.”

Australia’s Foreign Affairs Department is still confirming the deceased but is extending consular assistance to the family.

A spokesman said, “The Australian Government remains deeply concerned about the situation of Australians in northeast Syria, including the welfare of those detained in prisons and other detention centres.”

Also Read

California police arrest suspect after 78-year-old woman stabbed to death

On Saturday, a 78-year-old woman was stabbed to death in an alley....