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Syrian Military Says Israeli Attack on Damascus Outskirts Caused Material Damage

Israeli soldiers operate in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights near the border with Syria, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and the Palestinian Islamist group Hamas, December 28, 2023. REUTERS/Gil Eliyahu
Israeli soldiers operate in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights near the border with Syria, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and the Palestinian Islamist group Hamas, December 28, 2023. REUTERS/Gil Eliyahu
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Syrian Military Says Israeli Attack on Damascus Outskirts Caused Material Damage

Israeli soldiers operate in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights near the border with Syria, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and the Palestinian Islamist group Hamas, December 28, 2023. REUTERS/Gil Eliyahu
Israeli soldiers operate in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights near the border with Syria, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and the Palestinian Islamist group Hamas, December 28, 2023. REUTERS/Gil Eliyahu

A Syrian military statement said an Israeli air strike early on Tuesday that came from the direction of the Golan Heights targeting positions in the outskirts of Damascus caused some material damage, Syrian state news agency (SANA) reported.
There was no immediate comment from Israeli officials, according to Reuters.
Since the Oct. 7 attack by Palestinian militant group Hamas on Israeli civilians and soldiers, Israel has escalated its strikes on Iranian-backed militia targets in Syria and has also struck Syrian army air defenses and some Syrian forces.

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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)
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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.