Man charged in Britain over Syria kidnappings

British police on Thursday charged a man with the kidnapping of two Western journalists by Islamic extremists in Syria after he was arrested at London's Heathrow Airport. London's Metropolitan Police said they charged Jubayer Chowdhury, 24, with terror offences. "Officers from Metropolitan Police's Counter Terrorism Command have tonight, 15 November, charged a second man in connection with an investigation into travel to Syria in support of alleged terrorist activity," the force said in a statement. He was arrested on Monday morning after arriving on a flight from Bahrain. The force confirmed that he had been charged with "unlawfully and injuriously" imprisoning John Cantlie from Britain and Jeroen Oerlemans of the Netherlands, who were held at a Syrian camp between July 17 and 26. A British trainee doctor, Shajul Islam, appeared in court last month charged with being part of the jihadist group that held them. The 26-year-old's six-week trial is set to begin on June 5. Cantlie, who was abducted with Oerlemans while covering the Syrian conflict, has said they were held by some 30 Islamic militants from countries including Britain, Pakistan and Chechnya. Both photographers suffered gunshot wounds when the Free Syrian Army, the main rebel movement fighting troops loyal to President Bashar al-Assad, freed them from their captors.