Amna Nawaz:
Austin Tice, a former U.S. Marine and freelance journalist, is one of the longest-held American hostages abroad. But the recent fall of Bashar al-Assad and his brutal regime in Syria has renewed hope that Tice will be found some 12 years after he was abducted during a reporting trip outside of Damascus.
Details about Tice’s imprisonment are limited, but here is what we do know. Tice traveled to Syria in May of 2012 to cover the war. On his way to Lebanon on August 14, he was detained at a checkpoint in Damascus. Five weeks later, a 43-second video surfaced showing Tice being held by armed captors. Reports emerged that Tice had escaped imprisonment in early 2013, but his freedom was short-lived and he was recaptured in Damascus soon thereafter.
Still, the Biden administration declared in 2021 its sincere belief that Tice was alive. And, more recently, a Syrian former prisoner has come forward telling NBC that he saw Tice twice in prison in 2022.
Tice’s family has long advocated for his release, pushing American officials over three administrations to do more to find him. And now that prisoners held by Assad’s regime are being released all across Syria, Tice’s family is stepping up their campaign to find him.
Austin Tice’s mother, Debora, joins us now.
Debora, welcome. Thanks for being here.
Debra Tice, Mother of Austin Tice: Thank you so much for having me here.
