The family of an American journalist held hostage in Syria for more than a decade said they are now confident he’s alive — but are also growing frustrated over “finger-pointing” talks with White House officials.
Austin Tice, 43, a freelance writer from Texas, and former Marine, disappeared in 2012 near Damascus while reporting on the civil war there — and hasn’t been heard from since.
The Syrian government has denied that it is holding Tice in captivity.
On Friday, his family spoke at a White House event amid the ongoing conflict in Syria.
“He is being cared for and he is well — we do know that,” Austin’s mother, Debra Tice, said, citing a “significant,” unidentified source that she claimed had been vetted by US officials.
“The news we’re hearing from the Middle East is the kind of thing that can unsettle a mom,” she added, according to reports.
Her daughter, Naomi Tice, said the family has been told “to wait and see how it pans out” — news she called “beyond frustrating.”
And the siblings’ dad, Marc Tice, added that a Thursday meeting with the State Department was not productive, according to reports.
“There were complaints and finger-pointing about who is preventing things from happening and who’s responsible for doing what,” he said.
Marc Tice said his family is waiting to see the same level of commitment to his son that has been shown to US hostages in other countries.
“We’ve seen it in Russia. We’ve seen it in China, we’ve seen in Venezuela, we see it in Gaza. … And we’ve yet to see it for us,” he said.
The Tices are also hoping that President-elect Donald Trump will take up the cause when he returns to the White House next month. Trump expressed interest in Austin Tice’s disappearance during his first term in the Oval Office.
“When Donald Trump was elected, that was the first thing on my mind, was to remind him of how much he loved Austin and how much he wanted (him) home,” Debra Tice said, calling it an “obsession” of Trump’s.
The Biden administration did not immediately comment on the the family’s source.
With Post wires
