Whelan finally re-establishes contact with family from Russian prison

American detainee Paul Whelan phoned his parents from Russia early on Friday, his brother said, the first contact since a period of silence last week that spurred the White House to express concern.

Whelan, a former U.S. Marine detained in Russia since 2018 and convicted on espionage charges in 2020, had been transferred to the hospital prison, his brother, David Whelan, said in a statement.

“So the call at least acts as a ‘proof of life,’ even if nothing else has been explained: when Paul went there, why, why the calls stopped, why the U.S. Embassy had to seek information about his whereabouts and the Russian authorities refused to respond, etc,” his brother said.