US military planes free US captives out of Syria

The US military has flown an American citizen out of Syria, just days after he was freed from months of captivity during the chaotic final days of Bashar al-Assad’s regime.

Travis Timmerman, 29, was handed over to a US garrison in Syria, near the borders with Iraq and Jordan. He is now reportedly in Jordan, where he met with US State Department officials.

He was found by local residents. near Damascus this week after he was freed by men armed with hammers.

A mystery has emerged about how exactly Timmerman arrived in Syria. The White House says it had no prior indication that he was even in Syria or in captivity.

Two US government sources told CBS, the BBC’s US partner, that a US military helicopter took Timmerman out of the country after Syrian rebels from the Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) group took him to US forces in the city ​​of Tanf.

According to the AP news agency, he told US officials that he hopes to remain in the Middle East rather than return to the United States.

It is unclear what Timmerman was doing in Syria.

Police in his home state of Missouri, as well as in Hungary, have said Timmerman was reported missing in May, having last been seen in Budapest.

His parents have said he disappeared in June.

Timmerman has told US media that he was on a religious “pilgrimage” when he crossed into Syria from Lebanon.

He told CBS that he was treated well during his time in captivity in Syria. Speaking to NBC News, he said his imprisonment was “a moment of solace, of meditation, and I am stronger for it.”

Timmerman’s family has expressed surprise that he is in Syria and said they were elated that he is safe.

His cousin, Mandy Pendridge, told CBS. “It’s hard not to have negative thoughts at that moment.

“We thought it was going to be the worst outcome for us.”

Speaking to CNN on Friday, his parents said they had no idea how Timmerman ended up in Syria, although his stepfather suggested he wanted to write a book about “ancient churches.”

His mother, Stacey Gardiner, said she believed her son “looked different” and had “been through a lot.”

Another cousin, Miranda Collins, said finding it was “the best Christmas present.”

“For seven months all we knew was that he was missing,” he said. “We didn’t know if he was alive or dead.”

Timmerman’s escape from Jordan comes as U.S. officials and Syrian groups continue the search for Austin Tice, a freelance American journalist who was taken captive near Damascus in 2012 while covering the country’s civil war.

He was last seen in a video, blindfolded and apparently distressed, posted online weeks after his capture. The United States believes he was being held by the Assad regime.

President Joe Biden has said that The United States believes Tice is alivebut his whereabouts are unknown.