Since 2017

Majd was detained by the Assad government in 2017 and died in its custody. This is the record as it is known.

What happened

  1. February 2017

    Majd traveled to Syria to visit family. Less than a day after arriving, he was detained at a checkpoint in Damascus by the government of Bashar al-Assad. His family did not hear from him again.

  2. January 2019

    His family went public, appealing to the United States government for help to bring him home. They campaigned for his release for the years that followed.

  3. May 2024

    United States officials told the family that Majd had died in detention. The Assad government never acknowledged holding him.

  4. June 2024

    In a statement on 11 June 2024, Secretary of State Antony Blinken honored Majd as an American who died while held in Syria, and said: “The Syrian government must answer for what happened to Majd.”

  5. July 2024

    His family filed suit against the Syrian state in federal court in Washington, DC.

  6. December 2024

    The Assad government fell. As Syria’s prisons were opened, the family hoped Majd might be among those freed.

  7. June 2025

    His daughter Maryam met Syria’s new president to press for answers about her father and other missing Americans. His remains had not been found.

  8. April 2026

    The United States District Court for the District of Columbia held the former Assad government responsible for his abduction, detention, torture and death in custody.

The family continues to search for his remains.

Sources

The family’s campaign

The family’s campaign site, Free Majd Kamalmaz, records the years they spent working for his release. His case is part of the Bring Our Families Home campaign, and the James Foley Foundation keeps a profile of his case among Americans held abroad.

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