Syrian activist Hassan Akkad detained in Damascus

British Syrian activist Hassan Akkad has been detained by security forces in Damascus, in an alleged response to his online comments criticising a prominent journalist. Akkad, founder of the Give Us the Money That You Owe! campaign, was taken into custody on Wednesday at about 9:45pm local time (18:45 GMT) while at a cafe in the capital’s al-Malki neighbourhood, the statement said. Recommended Stories list of 3 items end of list His detention appears to be related to a legal complaint filed by Syrian journalist and presenter Mousa al-Omar in relation to “Hassan’s social media activities and public comments”, the campaign reported. It added that he was summoned by the cybersecurity branch on June 4. Al Jazeera understands that Akkad is still detained. “He later became aware that additional cases had also been filed against him, although he was not informed of the identities of the complainants,” the campaign said. Al Jazeera reached out to the Syrian government regarding he case but has yet to receive a response regarding the activist’s arrest. Public Prosecutor Judge Hossam Khattab confirmed that Akkad had been detained due to a search warrant being issued for him, but that the case against him had been dropped. Al-Omar told Al Jazeera that he had instructed his lawyer to tell the police that he had dropped the case against Akkad and said he was “saddened” by what had happened. …