Man identifying himself as American Travis Timmerman found in Syria after being released from prison

A man who identified himself as an American from Missouri, Travis Timmerman, was found Thursday in Syria after being released from a prison earlier in the week, when dictator Bashar Al-Assad was ousted from power by a shock rebel offensive.

Timmerman told CBS News foreign correspondent Elizabeth Palmer that he had been trying to leave the country on his own after leaving the prison where he had been held for more than half a year. He said he was detained entering Syria without permission seven months ago after spending a month in neighboring Lebanon.

A U.S. official told CBS News that the government was aware of reports that an American had been found outside Damascus and was trying to provide support, but the official declined to provide further details out of respect for his privacy.

Timmerman said two men armed with AK-47s broke down his prison door Monday with a hammer.

“My door was knocked down, that woke me up,” Timmerman said. “I thought the guards were still there, so I thought the war might have been more active than it ended up being… Once we got out, there was no resistance, there was no real fighting.”

Timmerman said he went to Syria “for spiritual purposes” and that his prison experience “wasn’t that bad.”

“They never hit me. The only really bad thing was that I couldn’t go to the bathroom when I wanted to. They only let me out three times a day to go to the bathroom,” he said.

Timmerman said he left the prison with a large group and began to walk away. He said he had been trying to head towards Jordan.

He said he “had some scary moments” when he left prison and hadn’t really processed that he was free.

“I haven’t thought about it yet. Since then, I’ve been more concerned about finding a place to sleep every night,” he told CBS News. So I’ve been working, really.”

Timmerman said he hasn’t been afraid to approach people for help or a place to sleep during his trip.

“Most of them came to me,” Timmerman said, adding that he had spoken to his family three weeks ago, through a phone he had while in prison. He said he had been allowed to use it.

“I feel good. They fed me and watered me, so I feel good,” Timmerman said.

Joanne Stocker

contributed to this report.