Name: Hilal Abdel Razaq Ali

Date of Birth: 01/05/1957

Nationality: British, Iraqi origin

Occupation: Sports/Basketball instructor

Spouse: Ms. Ihsan Al-Shami, 

Nationality: British, Syrian Origins

Children: He has a daughter and three sons. They all are British Nationals

His Arrest

Mr. Hilal Ali had been resident in London for more than ten years. Last year, he signed a contract with one of the sports clubs in Syria to go and work as a basketball instructor. Accordingly, he left London with his wife and children to work in Syria. They maintained regular visits to London.

On the 23rd of July, Mr. Ali called up one of his friends in London and expressed his fear of arrest by the Syrian Intelligence Unit. This he thought was due to the fact that one of his wife’s relatives (Syrian origins) had breached national security and had escaped from arrest and that the Intelligence Unit was arresting all his relatives in order to pressure him to surrender himself.

Two days after that phone call; Mr. Ali was arrested as he was leaving his place of work with his kids. Witnesses said that Mr. Ali was snatched away from his kids leaving them abandoned in the street. After that incident, Ms. Al-Shami contacted one of Mr. Ali’s friends in London asking that no one should contact her as she was afraid for her safety.

The Trial!

His family are not aware of any warrant been issued for his arrest nor any charges being put to him. Mr. Ali has never received any a trial nor was he brought before a judge.He was transferred to the Palestine Branch of the Syrian Intelligence Services.

The British embassy in Damascus has contacted the Syrian government through the Syrian Foreign Ministry. The Syrian government had acknowledged that Mr. Ali had been arrested and that they would come back with more details on the circumstances of his arrest and his whereabouts. Later on they denied that he had been arrested or that he was in Syria at all.

Additional details and current conditioin:

Mr. Ali is being subjected to torture and is detained at the Palestinian Branch of the General Syrian Security Service. He remains detained to this date.
He left to Syria in July 2000 using the British passport and was detained. 

Not visited by wife or children. The wife was visited by the Intelligence Service and the father in law died after he was put under pressure to pay $16,000. 
A visit was arranged. However, it was done through the intelligence service and therefore she feared for her life as this was not an appropriate channel.
 
Syrian Human Rights Committee appeals to all philanthropists to disclose Mr. Hilal Ali whereabouts. And to work hard to put an end to the harsh security grip imposed on Syrian people for more than three decades.