Blasts Rock Pro-Iran Missile Stocks in Syria, Says Monitor

Previous Israeli bombing on the outskirts of Damascus (Reuters)
Previous Israeli bombing on the outskirts of Damascus (Reuters)
TT

Blasts Rock Pro-Iran Missile Stocks in Syria, Says Monitor

Previous Israeli bombing on the outskirts of Damascus (Reuters)
Previous Israeli bombing on the outskirts of Damascus (Reuters)

Violent explosions were heard from missile stockpiles of pro-Iran militias east of Syria's capital Damascus before dawn on Sunday, a war monitor said.

Residents of the Damascus region heard the blasts which came from "the warehouses of pro-Iran militias" in a mountainous area east of the capital, said the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, which relies on a wide network of sources inside Syria, AFP reported.

"We don't know if it was from an air strike or ground operation," Observatory head Rami Abdel Rahman told AFP.

During more than a decade of war in Syria, neighbouring Israel has launched hundreds of air strikes on Syrian territory, primarily targeting Iran-backed forces and Hezbollah fighters, as well as Syrian army positions.

Syria's official news agency SANA said during the night that "the sounds of explosions" had been heard on the outskirts of Damascus.

Four Syrian soldiers and two Iran-backed fighters were killed last Monday in pre-dawn Israeli air strikes near Damascus, the Observatory said at the time, in the latest deadly Israeli air raid to hit war-torn Syria's capital.

The air strikes targeted Syrian regime forces, as well as military positions and weapons depots used by armed groups supported by Tehran, the monitor said.



US Journalist Missing in Syria Since 2012 Is Believed to Be Alive, Says Aid Group

A banner for journalist Austin Tice, who disappeared while reporting in Syria in 2012, hangs outside the National Press Club building in Washington, US, May 2, 2023. (Reuters)
A banner for journalist Austin Tice, who disappeared while reporting in Syria in 2012, hangs outside the National Press Club building in Washington, US, May 2, 2023. (Reuters)
TT

US Journalist Missing in Syria Since 2012 Is Believed to Be Alive, Says Aid Group

A banner for journalist Austin Tice, who disappeared while reporting in Syria in 2012, hangs outside the National Press Club building in Washington, US, May 2, 2023. (Reuters)
A banner for journalist Austin Tice, who disappeared while reporting in Syria in 2012, hangs outside the National Press Club building in Washington, US, May 2, 2023. (Reuters)

American journalist Austin Tice is believed to be still alive, according to the head of an international aid group.

Nizar Zakka, who runs the Hostage Aid Worldwide organization, said there has never been any proof that Tice, who has been missing since 2012, is dead.

He told reporters in Damascus on Tuesday that Tice was alive in January and being held by the authorities of ousted Bashar al-Assad. He added that US President Joe Biden said in August that Tice was alive.

Zakka said Tice was transferred between security agencies over the past 12 years, including in an area where Iranian-backed fighters were operating.

Asked if it was possible Tice had been taken out of the country, Zakka said Assad most likely kept him in Syria as a potential bargaining chip.

Biden said Dec. 8 that his administration believed Tice was alive and was committed to bringing him home, though he also acknowledged that “we have no direct evidence” of his status.