US team enters Syria after power shift: New hope for missing reporter
A fresh search begins in Syria for journalist who went missing over a decade ago. Recent political changes in Damascus opened new ways to find answers about his whereabouts
A search-and-rescue mission is heading into Syria to look for Austin Tice‚ an american news-writer who vanished while covering the war-torn countryʼs unrest about 12 years ago. The operation gained new momentum after recent political shifts in Damascus
The head of Syria-focused non-profit group Mouaz Moustafa crossed the turkish-syrian border on 12/10 and plans to reach the capital next day; his team thinks recent changes in syrian leadership might help locate the long-missing reporter
The search teamʼs arrival marks the first US-backed mission since Tice disappeared — a development that became possible due to unexpected changes in Damascus leadership structure. The american journalist was working on documenting the local conflict when contact with him was lost; his work helped show the real situation in conflict zones
The mission has support from various groups and aims to use new diplomatic channels that opened up after recent political developments. The team plans to meet local officials check records and follow-up on previous tips about Ticeʼs whereabouts (which werent properly investigated before due to complicated relations between countries)
