Lebanon – Masdar Diplomacy, January 13, 2025
Marlene Khalifa: Hostage Aid Worldwide tweeted yesterday that Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati brought up the case of American journalist Austin Tice, who has been missing in Syria for 12 years, during his first meeting with the head of the new Syrian administration, Ahmad al-Sharaa. The tweet included a controversial question:
“It seems that everyone is interested in bringing Austin home except the US government?” The organization’s president, Mr. Nizar Zakka, who is currently in Syria, said in an interview with Masdar Diplomacy that Austin Tice’s family appreciates the initiative of Prime Minister Mikati, who raised the issue and offered support to the new Syrian regime led by Mr. Ahmad al-Sharaa. “Mikati confirmed that the resources of the Lebanese state are available to help locate Austin and all Lebanese missing in Syria, an effort that has been gratefully received by his family.”
Zakka, who has been searching for a month in Syrian detention centers and prisons looking for clues about the whereabouts of Tice, whose case has turned into a global public opinion issue and the U.S. government has allocated $10 million to anyone who knows anything about him, added: “In fact, the family asked Mikati before the meeting to raise the issue because they feel that the US government is not doing enough. The US administration is not on the ground in Syria, it is not working seriously. The visits made by the current administration are pro forma and are not directed to search for Austin. The family is relying on the new US administration, the efforts of the Hostage Aid Worldwide and many other parties.”
He stressed that “everyone in the world cares about Austin, including Lebanon, except for the United States, which is not doing enough.” Criticism is particularly directed at the Office of Hostage Affairs, which is in charge of the file and is not doing its job properly.
U.S. officials visit Syria for quick one-hour meetings without making the search for Austin a priority.”
