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A group of U.S. officials are in Syria’s capital for the first time in more than 10 years seeking information about U.S. citizens who went missing under the Assad regime, among other things.
The team visiting Damascus consists of US Special Envoy for Hostage Affairs Roger Carstens, Under Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs (NEA) Barbara Leaf, and NEA Senior Advisor Daniel Rubinstein, he said. a State Department spokesperson told Fox News Digital.
Rubinstein, who previously served as US special envoy for Syria and has decades of foreign affairs experience, will lead the diplomatic engagement, the spokesperson confirmed.
Its mission is to collaborate with the Syrian people and key parties within the country. It is also seeking to coordinate with allies to promote principles laid out at a meeting between world leaders in the Jordanian city of Aqaba earlier this month.
BIDEN SAYS HE KNOWS ‘FOR CERTAINTY’ THAT AMERICAN JOURNALIST AUSTIN TICE IS DETAINED BY SYRIA
Under Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs (NEA) Barbara Leaf (left), US Special Envoy for Hostage Affairs Roger Carstens (center) and NEA Senior Advisor Daniel Rubinstein (right) meet are in Damascus, Syria, for a diplomatic engagement, a State Department spokesperson told Fox News Digital (Alex Wong/Getty Images; Mehmet Serkan afak/Anadolu via Getty Images; Gali Tibbon-Pool/Getty Images)
The trio will meet with the Syrian people to discover their vision for their country after the fall of the Assad regime earlier this month amid an ongoing civil war. They will also ask how the United States can help them in the future they want.
“They will engage directly with the Syrian people, including members of civil society, activists, members of different communities and other Syrian voices,” the spokesperson said in part.
The three officials will also meet with representatives of Hayat Tahrir Al-Sham (HTS)), a U.S.-designated terrorist group, to “discuss transition principles” supported by the United States and its regional partners in Aqaba, Jordan, the State Department said.
Abu Mohamed al-Jolani leads the US-designated Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) terrorist group, which took over Syria after the fall of the Assad regime. (OMAR HAJ KADOUR/AFP via Getty Images)
THE ISLAMIST GROUP THAT LEADS SYRIA HAS A DIFFERENT BACKGROUND ON GOVERNANCE IN THE PROVINCE, GOVERNED WITH AN ‘IRON FIST’
Secretary of State Antony Blinken previously noted that world leaders discussed “the need for an inclusive Syrian-led political transition” during the Aqaba Meetings on Syria in Jordan on December 14.
“The United States supports a future government in Syria elected by all Syrians and their representatives,” Blinken said on X.
Secretary of State Antony Blinken met with Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan on December 13 in Turkey to discuss establishing greater stability in Syria amid competing rebel factions. (Getty Images)
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Another goal of the visit is to determine what has happened to American citizens who went missing under the Assad regime, including former Marine turned freelance journalist Austin Tice, who was kidnapped while reporting in Syria in 2012.
Carstens has been leading the charge to locate Tice and recently shared that Rewards for Justice is offering up to $10 million for information on his whereabouts.
The State Department’s Reward for Justice program is offering $10 million for information related to Austin Tice. (The State Department’s reward for justice)
“Given recent events in Syria, the FBI is renewing our request for information that may lead to the safe location, recovery and return of Austin Bennett Tice, who was detained in Damascus in August 2012,” the FBI said. in a statement.
