**The former British military officer was found dead Monday at the foot of his apartment in Istanbul days after Russia accused him of espionage and ties with terrorist groups.** In the early morning of this Monday, when the faithful went to the dawn prayer in the Kiliç Ali Pasa mosque, in the Istanbul neighborhood of Karaköy, they found the lifeless body of a man. It was James Le Mesurier, former officer of the British Army and one of the promoters of the Syrian Civil Defense, better known as the white helmets , the volunteers dedicated to rescuing victims of the bombings in areas under rebel control in Syria. According to the information published by the Turkish media, Le Mesurier had fractures in both legs and in the head and was at the foot of his apartment, a two-story building, so a fall from the balcony has been considered as One of the possible causes of death. However, the facts surrounding his death are not clear and the provincial delegation of the Turkish Government in Istanbul explained in a statement that “a judicial investigation” has been initiated on the case. Le Mesurier, 43, graduated from the Royal Sandhurst Military School in England and served as an officer in Northern Ireland, Bosnia and Kosovo. He also worked in UN missions. He later founded the Mayday Rescue organization, based in Amsterdam and Istanbul, and whose main mission was to offer training and financing to white helmets and for this he had funds from the United Nations. The white helmets have confirmed the news of the death and have said that they welcome "with great regret" the disappearance of "a great leader, visionary and esteemed colleague", while asking "to stop unnecessary speculation about the cause of his death until the investigation has been completed. ” Last Friday, the spokeswoman for the Russian Foreign Ministry, Maria Zajarova, charged harshly against Le Mesurier, who said “he is a former agent of the British [secret service] MI6 who has been seen all over the world, including the Balkans and the Middle East ”and the one he accused of“ having connections with terrorist groups ”. Russia and the Syrian Government of Bachar el Asad consider white helmets a terrorist organization - they have denounced chemical attacks and other crimes of the regime- and ensure that they have manipulated attack scenarios to accuse Moscow and Damascus of them. Other sources, on the other hand, point out that their work has saved thousands of people. The president of the United States, Donald Trump, approved last October an extraordinary aid of 4.5 million dollars (about 4.1 million euros) for this organization. https://elpais.com/internacional/2019/11/11/actualidad/1573487728_300638.html