at the hands of ~ #2

外務省はシリアへの渡航を計画していたフリーカメラマン杉本祐一さんにパスポートを返納させ，シリアへの渡航を強制的に阻止しました。
at the hands of ~はすでにブログで採り上げられていますが，at the hand(s) of Aで「A〈人〉(の手)によって」「Aのために〈ひどい目に遭うなど〉」という意味（『プログレッシブ英和中辞典』小学館）。辞書にもあるように被害などの悲惨な目にあった場合に用いられることが多く，今回のような内容には適当な表現だと考えられます。「〜によって」というと前置詞のbyを安易に想起しがちですが，atを用いたat the hands of ~も押さえておきましょう。（Koyamamoto）

cf. http://d.hatena.ne.jp/A30/20100925/1285405290

Japan confiscates passport of journalist planning to travel to Syria
Tokyo (CNN)After the deaths of two Japanese citizens at the hands of ISIS, Tokyo has stopped a journalist from traveling to Syria by confiscating his passport.
It's the first time the Japanese government has taken such a step. But the journalist, Yuichi Sugimoto, has suggested it's a breach of his rights.
"Ministry officials and police officers told me that unless I returned my passport, I would be arrested," he told Japanese television.
Sugimoto, a 58-year-old freelance photo journalist, said he challenged the officials over whether the confiscation conflicted with freedoms of expression, movement and the press.
The Japanese Foreign Ministry said its officials, accompanied by police officers, visited Sugimoto's home in the city of Niigata on Saturday night. They asked him to surrender his passport, citing a provision in the passport law that refers to the protection of citizens' lives in emergencies.
http://edition.cnn.com/2015/02/09/asia/japan-blocks-journalist-travel-to-syria/index.html