James Le Mesurier, who was found dead in Istanbul on November 11, is suspected of being an MI6 agent after founding the White Hat group in Syria.

James Le Mesurier, 48, was born into a career family in Singapore. Later, he moved to England and attended the Royal Military University.

After graduating, Le Mesurier became a British army officer and was stationed in Northern Ireland, Bosnia and Kosovo. He decided to become a consultant on security and military issues after leaving the army in 1990.

In late 2012, when the Syrian civil war was in a fierce state, Le Mesurier came to Turkey with the desire to establish emergency rescue groups and civilian forces in the region occupied by rebels in Syria.

Here, Le Mesurier founded the Mayday Rescue team, bringing volunteers from Syria to Turkey to train emergency medical rescue skills, as well as providing them with equipment and financial support. . Mayday declared it a non-profit organization, receiving funding from the United Nations and many other countries such as the United Kingdom, Canada, Denmark, Germany and the Netherlands.

In 2014, Le Mesurier and the Mayday Rescue team founded and trained the Syrian Civil Defense Organization, also known as the White Helmet. The organization consists of more than 3,000 members, operating inside the opposition-controlled war zones in Syria.

Since Russia's military intervention in Syria to support President Bashar al-Assad's government against Islamic rebels and rebels, the White Hat has frequently appeared in Western media reports.

They have been hailed as "saving thousands of innocent civilians" in air strikes allegedly conducted by Russia and the Syrian army. Members of the group, featuring a white helmet, also appeared in videos accusing the Syrian army of "using chemical weapons" against civilians, prompting the United States to launch a military air campaign. Syria 2017.

These appearances made the White Hat group popular and received widespread support in the West. Le Mesurier was awarded the Imperial Medal by the British Queen Elizabeth II for contributions in Syria and the White Hat group in 2016.

That same year, the documentary about the White Hat's emergency response team during the air raids also won an Oscar. The group has also been nominated for a Nobel Peace Prize and has received several other humanitarian awards.

However, Russia often criticizes the videos released by the White Hat group as "staging" to blame the Syrian government, while accusing it of supporting the rebel groups. In a tweet on November 9, the Russian Foreign Ministry said Le Mesurier was a former MI6 British intelligence agent who had "connected with terrorist groups" while on duty in Kosovo.

Le Mesurier was found dead outside his apartment in the city of Istanbul, Turkey at about 4:30 on 11/11 in the state of a skull fracture and fracture of the leg bone, suspected of falling from the apartment balcony. The Istanbul Governor's Office said authorities had opened a comprehensive investigation into Le Mesurier's death.

Istanbul City police said they were investigating suicides, and revealed recently Le Mesurier had requested medical treatment due to stress and regularly used sleeping pills and antidepressants.

In a November 11 statement, the Mayday group confirmed Le Mesurier's death and called him "a visionary and a great leader". "James has devoted his life to helping and protecting civilians in emergencies such as conflict and natural disasters. And nowhere else in the world does this whole sense of the job matter. he did as he did in Syria, "the organization said.

Karen Pierce, British ambassador to the United Nations, considered Le Mesurier to be a "true hero" and said he "deserved the respect of all".