The first US diplomats to visit Syria since President Bashar Assad’s recent ouster have arrived in Damascus to engage with the new leadership and seek information on missing American journalist Austin Tice.
The delegation is led by Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs Barbara Leaf, former special envoy for Syria Daniel Rubinstein, and Roger Carstens, the Biden administration’s chief envoy for hostage negotiations. The State Department announced on Friday that this visit marks the first formal presence of American diplomats in Syria since the US embassy in Damascus was closed in 2012.
The diplomats are scheduled to meet with various Syrian stakeholders, including civil society members, activists, and representatives from diverse communities, to discuss their vision for Syria’s future and explore ways the United States can support them.
A primary objective of their visit is to gather information on Austin Tice, a journalist who went missing in Syria in 2012. The delegation will also advocate for the inclusion, protection of minorities, and rejection of terrorism and chemical weapons, which the Biden administration views as essential for US support for a new government.
Efforts to locate and repatriate Tice have intensified, with US officials communicating with the rebel forces that ousted Assad. Carstens has previously travelled to Lebanon to seek information regarding Tice’s whereabouts.
Tice, whose work has appeared in The Washington Post and McClatchy newspapers, was last seen at a checkpoint in a contested area west of Damascus during the height of the Syrian civil war. A video released weeks after his disappearance showed him blindfolded and held by armed men, uttering the words, “Oh, Jesus.” Assad’s government has publicly denied holding him.
The rebel group that led the assault on Damascus, Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), is classified as a foreign terrorist organisation by the US and others. Although this designation includes several sanctions, it does not prevent US officials from engaging with its members or leaders. The State Department confirmed that Rubinstein, Leaf, and Carstens will meet with HTS officials, though it is unclear if the group’s leader, Ahmad al-Sharaa, who has a history of alignment with al-Qaida, will be present.
While the US acknowledges al-Sharaa’s public commitments to protecting minority and women’s rights, officials remain sceptical about his long-term adherence to these principles.
Since 2012, the US has had no formal diplomatic presence in Syria, though American troops remain in certain areas combating the Islamic State (IS). The Pentagon disclosed on Thursday that the U.S. had doubled its forces in Syria to counter IS before Assad’s fall and had increased airstrikes against IS targets to prevent the group’s resurgence.
The current visit by US diplomats to Damascus is not expected to result in the immediate reopening of the US embassy, which is currently under the protection of the Czech government. Decisions regarding diplomatic recognition will be made based on the new Syrian authorities’ actions and intentions.
Frances Ibiefo
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