{"id":18898,"date":"2025-06-15T19:55:40","date_gmt":"2025-06-15T19:55:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.watanserb.com\/en\/?p=18898"},"modified":"2025-06-15T19:55:40","modified_gmt":"2025-06-15T19:55:40","slug":"u-s-journalist-austin-tice-allegedly-killed-on-assads-orders-says-high-ranking-insider-to-fbi","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.watanserb.com\/en\/2025\/06\/15\/u-s-journalist-austin-tice-allegedly-killed-on-assads-orders-says-high-ranking-insider-to-fbi\/","title":{"rendered":"U.S. Journalist Austin Tice Allegedly Killed on Assad\u2019s Orders, Says High-Ranking Insider to FBI"},"content":{"rendered":"<p class=\"ai-optimize-6 ai-optimize-introduction\"><em><strong>Watan<\/strong><\/em>-The Washington Post reported on Sunday that a senior security official close to deposed Syrian President Bashar al-Assad told the FBI that American journalist Austin Tice was killed in 2013 on Assad\u2019s orders. This is the first time a high-ranking Assad regime official has spoken to U.S. authorities about Tice&#8217;s fate. Tice, a freelance reporter for The Washington Post and McClatchy, was one of the first American journalists to enter Syria after the outbreak of the war in 2011 and was kidnapped in August 2012.<\/p>\n<p class=\"ai-optimize-8\" data-start=\"1523\" data-end=\"1836\">According to U.S. officials and informed sources who spoke on condition of anonymity, the U.S. government is verifying the credibility of claims made by Bassam al-Hassan, a close Assad adviser on strategic affairs. Al-Hassan was questioned over several days in April by the FBI and CIA in Beirut, Lebanon.<\/p>\n<p class=\"ai-optimize-9\" data-start=\"1838\" data-end=\"2179\">Al-Hassan reportedly told the FBI\u2014during meetings also attended by Lebanese officials\u2014that Assad himself ordered Tice\u2019s execution, and that al-Hassan attempted unsuccessfully to persuade him to change his mind. Hassan said he instructed a subordinate to carry out the execution in 2013 after Tice briefly escaped from his detention cell.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_18900\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-18900\" style=\"width: 1024px\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-18900 size-large\" src=\"https:\/\/www.watanserb.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/192-1024x574.jpg\" alt=\"The Washington Post reported on Sunday that a senior security official close to deposed Syrian President Bashar al-Assad told the FBI that American journalist Austin Tice was killed in 2013 on Assad\u2019s orders\" width=\"1024\" height=\"574\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.watanserb.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/192-1024x574.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.watanserb.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/192-300x168.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.watanserb.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/192-768x430.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.watanserb.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/192-390x220.jpg 390w, https:\/\/www.watanserb.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/192.jpg 1280w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-18900\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Assad Aide Gave FBI Clues on Austin Tice&#8217;s Detention and Burial in Damascus<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<article class=\"text-token-text-primary w-full\" dir=\"auto\" data-testid=\"conversation-turn-56\" data-scroll-anchor=\"true\">\n<div class=\"text-base my-auto mx-auto py-5 [--thread-content-margin:--spacing(4)] @[37rem]:[--thread-content-margin:--spacing(6)] @[72rem]:[--thread-content-margin:--spacing(16)] px-(--thread-content-margin)\">\n<div class=\"[--thread-content-max-width:32rem] @[34rem]:[--thread-content-max-width:40rem] @[64rem]:[--thread-content-max-width:48rem] mx-auto flex max-w-(--thread-content-max-width) flex-1 text-base gap-4 md:gap-5 lg:gap-6 group\/turn-messages focus-visible:outline-hidden\" tabindex=\"-1\">\n<div class=\"group\/conversation-turn relative flex w-full min-w-0 flex-col agent-turn\">\n<div class=\"relative flex-col gap-1 md:gap-3\">\n<div class=\"flex max-w-full flex-col grow\">\n<div class=\"min-h-8 text-message relative flex w-full flex-col items-end gap-2 text-start break-words whitespace-normal [.text-message+&amp;]:mt-5\" dir=\"auto\" data-message-author-role=\"assistant\" data-message-id=\"eff91fdf-4aef-426e-b935-f81ba58c234d\" data-message-model-slug=\"gpt-4o\">\n<div class=\"flex w-full flex-col gap-1 empty:hidden first:pt-[3px]\">\n<div class=\"markdown prose dark:prose-invert w-full break-words light\">\n<h3 class=\"ai-optimize-17\" data-start=\"22\" data-end=\"97\">Assad Aide Gave FBI Clues on Austin Tice&#8217;s Detention and Burial in Damascus<\/h3>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"flex min-h-[46px] justify-start\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<p class=\"ai-optimize-10\" data-start=\"2181\" data-end=\"2421\">In recent years, U.S. officials obtained a previously undisclosed 2012 Syrian intelligence memo calling for Tice\u2019s recapture after his apparent escape. This memo is viewed as proof that Assad\u2019s regime was holding him despite public denials.<\/p>\n<p class=\"ai-optimize-11\" data-start=\"2423\" data-end=\"2725\">Al-Hassan allegedly advised Assad that Tice\u2014whose case drew White House attention\u2014could be used as a bargaining chip, insisting he was &#8220;more useful alive than dead.&#8221; Some officials, however, question whether Hassan truly tried to oppose the order, suggesting he may be trying to deflect responsibility.<\/p>\n<p class=\"ai-optimize-12\" data-start=\"2727\" data-end=\"2917\">Hassan also reportedly gave investigators details about Tice\u2019s burial site, which, while inconsistent, all placed it within the Damascus area. The FBI is now working to locate that site.<\/p>\n<p class=\"ai-optimize-13\" data-start=\"2919\" data-end=\"3271\">A second former Syrian official confirmed that al-Hassan had detained Tice. According to Safwan Bahloul, a self-described Syrian intelligence general, Tice was initially held in a garage near Hassan\u2019s Damascus office. Bahloul, who now lives in the UK, said he interrogated Tice, who insisted he was a former U.S. Marine turned freelance journalist.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_12865\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-12865\" style=\"width: 1024px\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-12865 size-large\" src=\"https:\/\/www.watanserb.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/bachar-1024x576.jpg\" alt=\" A second former Syrian official confirmed that al-Hassan had detained Tice. According to Safwan Bahloul, a self-described Syrian intelligence general, T\" width=\"1024\" height=\"576\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.watanserb.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/bachar-1024x576.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.watanserb.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/bachar-300x169.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.watanserb.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/bachar-768x432.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.watanserb.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/bachar-390x220.jpg 390w, https:\/\/www.watanserb.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/bachar.jpg 1200w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-12865\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Assad regime<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<article class=\"text-token-text-primary w-full\" dir=\"auto\" data-testid=\"conversation-turn-58\" data-scroll-anchor=\"true\">\n<div class=\"text-base my-auto mx-auto py-5 [--thread-content-margin:--spacing(4)] @[37rem]:[--thread-content-margin:--spacing(6)] @[72rem]:[--thread-content-margin:--spacing(16)] px-(--thread-content-margin)\">\n<div class=\"[--thread-content-max-width:32rem] @[34rem]:[--thread-content-max-width:40rem] @[64rem]:[--thread-content-max-width:48rem] mx-auto flex max-w-(--thread-content-max-width) flex-1 text-base gap-4 md:gap-5 lg:gap-6 group\/turn-messages focus-visible:outline-hidden\" tabindex=\"-1\">\n<div class=\"group\/conversation-turn relative flex w-full min-w-0 flex-col agent-turn\">\n<div class=\"relative flex-col gap-1 md:gap-3\">\n<div class=\"flex max-w-full flex-col grow\">\n<div class=\"min-h-8 text-message relative flex w-full flex-col items-end gap-2 text-start break-words whitespace-normal [.text-message+&amp;]:mt-5\" dir=\"auto\" data-message-author-role=\"assistant\" data-message-id=\"b3398c88-65f3-401c-97c5-ff6ff7693885\" data-message-model-slug=\"gpt-4o\">\n<div class=\"flex w-full flex-col gap-1 empty:hidden first:pt-[3px]\">\n<div class=\"markdown prose dark:prose-invert w-full break-words light\">\n<h3 class=\"ai-optimize-18\" data-start=\"22\" data-end=\"95\">Syrian Regime Faked Tice Hostage Video, Pledged New Cooperation in Search<\/h3>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"flex min-h-[46px] justify-start\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"absolute\">\n<div class=\"flex items-center justify-center\">Bahloul claimed Tice was treated well despite being handcuffed and said their conversations occasionally turned light-hearted. He also said al-Hassan orchestrated the September 2012 hostage video, which U.S. intelligence determined was staged by Assad\u2019s regime to falsely suggest that extremists were holding Tice.<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<p class=\"ai-optimize-15\" data-start=\"3593\" data-end=\"3853\">In April, Syria\u2019s foreign ministry reportedly pledged to open a liaison office to help locate Tice\u2019s remains as part of talks with the U.S. over lifting sanctions. The same message was echoed in the Syrian foreign minister\u2019s address to the UN Security Council.<\/p>\n<p class=\"ai-optimize-16\" data-start=\"3855\" data-end=\"4035\">Tice\u2019s mother, Debra Tice, visited Damascus in January with Nizar Zakka, head of the hostage aid group Hostage Aid Worldwide. She expressed hope of bringing her son home.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Watan-The Washington Post reported on Sunday that a senior security official close to deposed Syrian President Bashar al-Assad told the FBI that American journalist Austin Tice was killed in 2013 on Assad\u2019s orders. This is the first time a high-ranking Assad regime official has spoken to U.S. authorities about Tice&#8217;s fate. Tice, a freelance reporter &hellip;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":18899,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[23],"tags":[6024,199,68,67,6025],"class_list":["post-18898","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-reports","tag-austin-tice","tag-bashar-al-assad","tag-beirut","tag-syria","tag-the-fbi"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v26.6 (Yoast SEO v27.6) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-premium-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>U.S. Journalist Austin Tice Allegedly Killed on Assad\u2019s Orders, Says High-Ranking Insider to FBI - Watan<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"A senior Syrian insider informed the FBI that journalist Austin Tice was killed in 2013 under orders from Bashar al-Assad,..\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, 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