Jumpei Yasuda, a journalist who returned home in 2018 after being held captive in Syria for more than three years, has sued the government over its denial of his request for a new passport, his lawyer said Sunday.
Yasuda filed the suit with the Tokyo District Court last Thursday, seeking cancellation of the Foreign Ministry' decision last July not to issue him a new passport, according to the lawyer. The journalist argues that the ministry's decision, which prevents him from traveling overseas, is "a violation of the Constitution that guarantees freedom of movement abroad."
The 45-year-old said his passport was stolen when he became a captive of a militant group in June 2015 after entering Syria to report on the Islamic State militant group.