(CNN) Paul Whelan, a US citizen detained in Russia, has been released from solitary confinement and was able to speak with his parents, his brother David Whelan told CNN Sunday. David Whelan said his brother, who had been detained in a Mordovian penal colony, was released either Thursday or Friday. He had not been able to speak to his family, his lawyer Olga Karlova for a month, or the US Embassy, and according to David Whelan he still has not spoken to the Embassy or Karlova. According to David Whelan, Paul does not know why he was put in solitary confinement. On Friday, the US Embassy in Moscow said the "Russian government has not responded to our repeated requests for updates about" Paul Whelan, and embassy spokesperson Jason Rebholz urged the Russian Foreign Ministry "to honor its obligations & respond to our requests for information."

Source: CNN August 08, 2021 19:51 UTC