奥巴马以个人名义请求普京帮忙寻找被叙利亚政府拘押的美国公民（英）

Kevin Patrick Dawes, an American freelance photographer who had been held captive in Syria since 2012, and was recently freed thanks to mediation by Russian President Vladimir Putin

Kevin Patrick Dawes, an American freelance photographer who had been held captive in Syria since 2012, and was recently freed thanks to mediation by Russian President Vladimir Putin

Moscow has helped to release a US citizen held captive in Syria after US President Barack Obama personally asked his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin to search for Americans in Syria, the Russian Foreign Ministry says.

“Some time ago, US President Barack Obama spoke to Russian President Vladimir Putin with a personal request for assistance in the search for US citizens who could be in Syrian territory,” Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said in a statement on Friday.

“As a result of this work, it was found out that one of them — Kevin [Patrick] Dawes — was being held under arrest for illegal entry into the country and other offenses. In response to our appeal, the Syrian authorities have found it possible to show clemency and release the American on humanitarian grounds,” she further said, adding that Moscow hoped Washington appreciated the gesture of the Syrian government in Damascus.