Syria writes to UN to condemn Israel jail sentence of Syrian man in Golan

Sedqi Suleiman al-Maqet, who is famously known as the “Dean of Syrian and Arab Captives” for having served the longest time in Israeli jails, was sentenced to serve 11 more years in Israeli jails, Syria's officials news agency SANA reported Tuesday.

The Syrian Foreign Ministry condemned the decision in two separate letters to the UN and the UNSC on Wednesday, asking UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights and other international organizations to push for al-Maqet's immediate release.

Maqet was released from an Israeli prison in August 2012, after serving 27 years in detention.

However, his freedom didn't last long as Israel's Shin Bet raided his home in 2015 and arrested him for photographing and videotaping Israeli forces during a meeting with terrorist groups wreaking havoc in Syria.

In its letters, Damascus asserted that Israel mistreated al-Maqet only because he had uncovered Israel's support for militant groups that fought Syria's legitimate government.

Sedqi's father, Suleiman, who has also served time in Israeli prisons, told SANA that the ruling was “null and illegal.” He also called on human rights organizations to intervene and help free his son.

The Israeli occupation authorities had initially handed al-Maqet's a 14-year prison sentence in May last year, after postponing his trial on numerous occasions.

Lebanese resistance movement Hezbollah has praised Maqet for his resistance and activism work against Israel.

When he was first released in 2012, Hezbollah called al-Maqet a "hero" who had reminded the Arab nations "of the real enemy which is endangering its existence."