Majd Kamalmaz, a US doctor detained in Syria for more than seven years, has died, the Bring Our Families Home campaign reports.

(CNN) — Majd Kamalmaz, the American who was detained in Syria more than seven years ago, has died, according to a statement from the Bring Our Families Home (BofH) campaign.

“Unfortunately, he could not escape the brutal prison conditions, living seven long years without a trial or any form of communication with his family,” a statement from BOFH spokesman Jonathan Franks said.

“He was a kind, loving and caring man who embodied these qualities as a son, husband, father, grandfather, brother and uncle,” she said.

Kamalmaz, a psychiatrist from Texas, was detained at a checkpoint in Damascus, Syria while traveling to visit his family in 2017.

CNN reported in 2020 that Kamalmaz’s relatives, who had not heard from him since his arrest, were hopeful that his case would gain momentum following a visit by Trump administration officials to Damascus in an effort to secure the release of American prisoners Organized by the Syrian government.

But Kamalmaz never returned home and there has been silence since his arrest in 2017.

A vigil is held outside the White House on February 17 to commemorate three years of Majd Kamalmaz’s detention in Syria. (family photo)

Speaking at the first Hostage and Unjust Detention Day earlier this year, BoFH steering committee member Maryam Kamalmaz said: “We feel invisible about our father’s disappearance”. He and his family asked for a meeting with the Biden administration, but that request was not met, CNN reports.

“For the past seven years, we have struggled to cope with our father’s absence,” Maryam Kamalmaz said in the statement announcing her father’s death.

“The heartbreak and emotional turmoil our family has gone through has taken a huge toll on our lives. He will be greatly missed, but we hope his legacy of helping those in need will live on and be passed on by many. “

CNN has contacted the State Department for comment.