Syrian officials confirmed they are holding journalist Dorothy Parvaz, her fiancé said on Wednesday.
Parvaz, who was born in Iran, had U.S. ties after reporting for the Seattle Post-Intelligencer. She was on assignment for al-Jazeera and was immediately taken into custody on reaching Damascus. The alert was raised after her employer failed to her from her.
Todd Baker, Parvaz’s fiancé, said al-Jazeera informed him that the top diplomat at the Syrian Embassy in Qatar confirmed she was in the government’s custody, the Post Intelligencer reports.
Syrian officials have made no official statement on the matter, but State Department Tanya Powell said on Tuesday that inquiries have been made with the Syrian government.
“Dorothy is a global citizen — she grew up in Iran, U.A.E. [United Arab Emirates], Canada and the United States, where she became a determined journalist,” Baker said in a statement issued on behalf of his fiancee’s family and himself. “She is dedicated to the profession as a force for peace and justice in the world. She is tough and she is a fighter — no doubt, she is stronger than us.
“We need to know where she is. We need to know who is holding her, and that she is comfortable. She is very loved. We need to know that she is safe.”
