Netanyahu promises Israel isn't bombing area where Austin Tice may be located
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Austin Tice's family at the National Press Club.Photo: Servet Gunerigok/Anadolu via Getty Images
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu promised the mother of U.S. journalist Austin Tice that the IDF isn't conducting airstrikes in areas in Syria where he might be located, according to a copy of a letter obtained by Axios.
Why it matters: After the fall of the Assad regime, the search for Tice — who was abducted in Syria 12 years ago — has been relaunched by his family, the U.S. government and private NGOs with ever greater urgency.
- The Biden administration said that it is working under the assumption that Tice is alive and that he was held by the Assad regime in one of Syria's many detention centers.
Driving the news: Thousands of detainees and prisoners were freed after the toppling of the Assad regime — including at least one American citizen who was held in a Syrian prison.
- The Biden administration, Tice's family and NGOs assisting in the search hope that the opening of the prisons — and the newly opened archives of Syrian intelligence services — could shed light on his whereabouts.
State of play: Over the last two weeks, Israel has launched a bombing campaign across Syria to take out Syrian military weapon systems and arms depots.
- Debra Tice, Austin's mother, sent a letter to Netanyahu Tuesday saying she has "credible information" that her son might be held in a prison near Damascus.
- She asked Netanyahu to pause the bombing campaign to allow rescuers to reach the site.
The other side: "Please rest assured that Israel and its intelligence agencies are fully coordinated with the relevant American authorities on the matter and that the IDF is not active in the area where Austin may be located," Netanyahu wrote Tice's mother in a letter dated Dec. 17.
- An Israeli official said there has been ongoing cooperation and coordination between the U.S. and Israeli governments about Tice's case, including in recent weeks.
- The Israel prime minister's office did not respond to a request for comment.
What they're saying: Nizar Zakka, the founder and president of Hostage Aid Worldwide, who is very close to senior Trump administration officials, arrived in Syria a few days ago to search for Tice.
- He told Axios he is glad to hear Netanyahu's commitment to Tice's mother, but warned similar commitments were given to families of Israeli hostages who were held in Gaza and killed by Israeli airstrikes.
- Zakka said the Israeli bombing campaign complicates the efforts by his team and others to locate Tice.
- "Some of the places we visited around Damascus were bombed a day later by the IDF. It complicated our work here," he said.
- "HTS is getting skeptical and getting access to military bases in Syria is getting harder," Zakka added, referring to the Islamist group that now controls Syria.
