Washington D.C. – CBS News, May 25, 2025
The new Syrian government has agreed to help the United States locate and return Americans who went missing in the war-ravaged country, the U.S. special envoy to Syria said on Sunday, in another sign of thawing bilateral ties between the two countries.
Thomas Barrack, the U.S. ambassador to Turkey who was also appointed as special envoy for Syria, described in a post on X that it was a “power step forward” between the two nations.
“The families of Austin Tice, Majd Kamalmaz, and Kayla Mueller must have closure,” he added, referring to American citizens who had gone missing or been killed in Syria during the devastating civil war that erupted in 2011.
“President Trump has made it clear that bringing home USA citizens or honoring, with dignity, their remains is a major priority everywhere,” Barrack said. “The new Syrian Government will aid us in this commitment.”
A Syrian source with knowledge of the talks between the two countries told AFP that there were 11 other names on Washington’s list of missing Americans. All of them are Syrian American.
