British aid worker Paul Urey dies in Russian-controlled area of Ukraine

British aid worker Paul Urey, captured by Russian-backed separatists in Ukraine, has died.

The captured British aid worker's death in Ukraine has been confirmed by a charity.

In a social media post, his mum Linda Urey said she was: "Absolutely devastated.”

The charity, the Presidium Network said the Foreign Office was in contact and offering support to the family of the 45-year-old, who was captured by Russian backed separatists in April.

Downing Street has expressed alarm at reports Mr Urey has died.

A No 10 spokesman said: “They’re clearly alarming reports and our thoughts are obviously with his family and friends.”

The Russian state news agency TASS said the 45-year-old from Lancashire, who was being held in the self-declared People’s Republic of Donetsk, died on Sunday of “illness and stress”, quoting a local official.

The Lancashire aid worker was detained on 25 April with another Briton Dylan Healy, 22, at a military checkpoint in the Zaporizhzhia region.

According to the Presidium Network charity, the two men had been acting independently, but were reporting in regularly to Presidium staff.

The charity said the two man were on a humanitarian mission to rescue a mother and two children in the war ravaged region and bring them to safety.

TASS quoted DPR official Daria Morozova as saying “British representatives ignored even the possibility of negotiating his return as part of the prisoner exchange procedure.

“Moreover, they did not provide the necessary medical preparations through the Red Cross.”

Mr Urey was reported to suffer from Type 1 Diabetes and required regular insulin shots.

Responding to claims from Russia that Paul Urey had died; a spokesperson at the Foreign Office said: "We are urgently seeking clarification from the Russian government on media reports that a British aid worker has died in Ukraine."

GB News has been told the Foreign Office is also urgently reaching out to Ukrainian officials and speaking to the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs for any information they have.