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Debra Tice has spent more than 12 years searching for her son, Austin Ticea Navy veteran and journalist who was kidnapped in Syria in August 2012. Through four presidential administrations, she has not given up hope that her son will return home alive. In fact, he calls the new Trump administration a “breath of fresh air.”
“They’re thinking about what they need to do, making suggestions, being ready, having ideas. The burden is not on me like it has been in the past,” Tice told Fox News Digital, referring to the Trump administration.
Navy veteran’s mother’s first trip back to Damascus, Syria, in over 10 years it comes on the heels of a revolution within the war-torn country. Debra Tice has only been in Syra for a few days, but she has already managed to meet with the country’s de facto leader, Ahmed al-Sharaawho led the group that overthrew Bashar al-Assad.
“It was really a big surprise that we were able to meet with al-Sharaa. It was a very good meeting,” Tice said.
SYRIA RESCUE MISSION OPERATOR BELIEVES AUSTIN TICE IS ALIVE AND WILL BE FOUND SOON
In this photo released by the Syrian state news agency SANA, Syria’s de facto leader Ahmad al-Sharaa, right, meets with Debra Tice, the mother of American journalist Austin Tice, who disappeared in Syria in 2012, at left, and Nizar Zakka, director of the nonprofit organization Hostage Aid Worldwide, center, in Damascus, Syria, Monday, Jan. 20, 2025. (SANA via AP)
Help for hostages around the worlda nonprofit organization coordinating Tice’s visit to Syria, was able to take her inside some of the prisons that have been abandoned since the fall of Assad. He said seeing the conditions in these prisons was “really challenging,” but that he appreciated getting a sense of “what Austin was facing.”
Tice also issued a challenge to those in the US government who “feel Austin can wait” to go see the prisons for themselves.
“I think if they had to come here, and I wouldn’t even ask them to spend the night in one of those prisons, but I think if they had gone to see what might have happened, maybe they would have done it.” “I was more motivated to get Austin out of there.”
Debra Tice, mother of missing American journalist Austin Tice, who disappeared while reporting in Syria in August 2012, attends a news conference while urging President Donald Trump to help reveal her son’s fate in Damascus, Syria, on 20 January 2025. (Bekir Kasim/Anadolu via Getty Images)
during a press conference On Monday, Tice praised the incoming Trump administration and confirmed that they have “already been in communication” regarding the Austin case.
“I haven’t experienced that in the last four years, but I’m optimistic about their help and involvement. I think they will act quickly,” Tice said.
Tice also took advantage of the press conference to send an emotional message to his missing son.
“Austin, if you can hear this at all, I love you. I know you won’t give up and I won’t give up either,” Tice said.
Tice says he has “never had any doubt about the fact that Austin will walk free. It’s a matter of time and, in my faith, it’s God’s time.”
When speaking of his hope and optimism about finding his son, Tice credited his “100 percent” faith. He added that “if I didn’t have my faith, I think I would fall apart into a lot of really small pieces.”
THE COLLAPSE OF THE ASSAD REGIME IN SYRIA RENEWS PRESSURE TO FIND AUSTIN TICE
The State Department’s Reward for Justice program is offering $10 million for information related to the location of Austin Tice. 12/9/2024 (The State Department’s reward for justice)
A State Department spokesperson told Fox News Digital that “intense efforts are still underway to find Austin Tice.” Additionally, the spokesperson said the department is “working to get U.S. officials to Damascus” to assist in the search, but is awaiting confirmation that “conditions are safe and local authorities can facilitate the visit.”
“We have used relevant information, as well as declassified intelligence, to inform the search efforts of Syrian and international partners in Damascus who search for Austin every day,” the spokesperson added.
“They have visited and searched numerous now-discovered secret prisons, but to date have not found Austin or any additional information to help us locate him.”
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Last month, after receiving a letter from Debra Tice, the Russian president Vladimir Putin He promised to ask Assad for help in finding Austin. However, so far there is no indication that this has happened.
