The mother of American journalist Austin Tice, kidnapped in Syria while reporting in 2012 and one of the longest-held American hostages, has returned to the country for the first time in decades to renew the search for her son.
The visit to Debra Tica comes after the fall of Bashar al-Assad’s regime in a lightning rebel offensive last month. Her son, a freelance journalist now 43, was captured while traveling through the Damascus suburb of Darayya covering the Syrian civil war.
“We had information, but the whole world has changed,” she said in an interview in the Syrian capital, Damascus, referring to Assad’s removal from power.
“We have no idea where he is now. It feels a bit like the beginning, trying to figure it out again.”
Tice was last seen in a video posted online weeks after his arrest, blindfolded and in obvious distress. No government or group has claimed responsibility for his disappearance, although over the years US officials have said they believe Tice is being held by the Assad government.
According to recent U.S. media reports, investigators believe Tice, a former U.S. Marine, briefly went on the run a few weeks after he was arrested but was recaptured by forces reporting directly to Assad.
Last month, after rebels led by the Islamist group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) ousted Assad and seized power, President Joe Biden said the US believed Tice was alive but his whereabouts were unknown. Rebels have opened up Syrian prisons, freeing thousands of people and giving experts access to documents that could shed light on what happened to Tice and other missing persons.
“I never had a moment of doubt… I always knew it [Tice] they will walk freely. And, you know, we have a whole new way of thinking about how that’s going to happen,” she said. “I can’t wait to be hugged [him].”
On Sunday, Debra Tice — who said she wears a “Free Austin Tice” badge even at home — met with Ahmed al-Shara, Syria’s de facto leader, who has vowed to hold him accountable for the worst crimes under the Assad regime.
She said she hoped families would continue to have access to the facilities where the prisoners were held “to allow people to seek and maintain hope.”
“I am here to be with people who understand longing, to be able to celebrate with people who are reuniting, and also to hold the hearts of those of us who are still searching and waiting and wishing and hoping and praying.”
She last visited Syria in 2015, when the country’s authorities stopped issuing her visas. Now, she said, “people are more relaxed” and “children have smiles on their faces.”
“I want to be one of the moms, one of the families that finds their loved one and hugs them and takes them home,” she said.
