Dan Newey traveled to Syria to join Kurdish forces Home Office: ‘We have consistently warned’ against UK nationals, residents going to Syria ‘for any reason’ LONDON: The father of a British man arrested fighting Daesh alongside Kurdish forces has said his family is being “persecuted.” Dan Newey, 28, was detained by police when he landed at Heathrow airport in London earlier this year. He had traveled to and fought on the border region between Syria and Turkey. Newey’s father Paul told British newspaper Metro that Dan had fought with the People’s Protection Units (YPG). Paul was arrested on suspicion of funding terrorism after sending his son £150 ($211). The case against him collapsed at the Old Bailey, the central criminal court of England and Wales, but former YPG fighters still face arrest even though it is not a banned group in Britain. Newey traveled to the Syrian border region against advice from the UK Foreign Office. He has previously claimed that he worked closely with British and US forces. Paul said his son “flew back into Heathrow and got arrested straight away under terrorism laws. He’s been on bail ever since. They’re looking into it but in the meantime he’s just been left in limbo. He can’t go to work and he can’t sign on. “There’s no light at the end of the tunnel — this could go on for years and we feel we’re being persecuted despite my son having risked his life to protect British interests.” Paul said his son was prevented from speaking to the media due to his legal situation in the UK. In November, Newey said he was “exhausted” after spending almost two years in Syria, but remained because he wanted to continue fighting Daesh. He added: “We survive this and then have another war when we go home. Lots of people don’t manage. I know many people that struggled to reintegrate, struggled to come to terms with the things they’d seen here, and the treatment of us by the Crown Prosecution Service makes it worse. People have taken their own lives. We’re not the criminals. We’re doing the right thing.” A UK Home Office spokesperson said in a statement: “We do not routinely comment on individual cases. We have consistently warned against UK nationals and residents travelling to Syria for any reason. “Those who become involved in fighting abroad, including fighting against Daesh alongside Kurdish groups, can expect to be arrested on return and investigated to establish if they pose any risk and whether they have committed any offences.”