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Jun
Jun
TOP-SECRET FILES REVEAL ASSAD REGIME’S ROLE IN AMERICAN JOURNALIST’S DISAPPEARANCE
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CapitalTimesNews / 3 weeks
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- 2 min read
Top-secret Syrian intelligence files obtained by the BBC have confirmed that missing American journalist Austin Tice was held in detention by the regime of now-deposed Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, despite the regime’s consistent denials. According to the files, Tice was arrested near the Damascus suburb of Darayya in August 2012 and held by members of a paramilitary force loyal to Assad, called the National Defence Forces (NDF). The documents, which include internal communications between branches of Syrian intelligence, explicitly name Tice and detail aspects of his detention. One communication, marked “top secret,” shows that he was held in a detention facility in the capital Damascus in 2012, specifically in the notorious Tahouneh prison. A former senior Syrian intelligence officer confirmed to the BBC that Tice was detained by the NDF “until at least February 2013.” During his captivity, Tice developed stomach problems and was treated by a doctor at least twice, including for a viral infection. A witness who saw him during detention said Tice “looked sad” and “the joy had gone from his face,” though he was reportedly treated better than Syrian inmates due to his perceived value. A former member of the NDF with intimate knowledge of Tice’s detention told the BBC that the regime saw Tice as a “card” to be used in negotiations with the US. “Austin’s value was understood,” the former member said. Tice briefly escaped his captivity by squeezing through a window in his cell but was later recaptured and interrogated at least twice by a Syrian government intelligence officer. When the Assad regime was ousted in December 2024, US President Joe Biden stated that he believed Tice was still alive. His mother, Debra Tice, had also received information from a “significant source” confirming her son was alive and being “treated well.” However, when prisons were emptied after the fall of the government, there was no sign of Tice, and his whereabouts remain unknown. The Tice family, who have led a tireless campaign to highlight their son’s disappearance, are aware of the new evidence, as are US authorities and Syrian human rights groups. Austin Tice, a former US marine captain and law student at Georgetown University, is believed to be one of the longest-held American hostages. The Syrian Network for Human Rights estimates that 100,000 people disappeared under Assad’s rule.
