White House official traveled to Syria for secret hostage talks
The Wall Street Journal first reported that Kash Patel traveled to Damascus in an effort to secure the release of Americans hostages including Austin Tice and Majd Kamalmaz.
The White House reportedly sent a top counterterrorism official to Damascus for negotiations over the release of at least two Americans believed to be detained by the Syrian government.
The Wall Street Journal first reported on Sunday that Kash Patel, a deputy assistant to President Donald Trump and senior director for counterterrorism at the National Security Council, had traveled to Damascus earlier this year for talks with Syrian government officials.
The Journal reported that Patel was seeking the release of freelance journalist Austin Tice, who disappeared in 2012, and Majd Kamalmaz, an American psychotherapist missing in Syria since 2017. The two men are among a handful of Americans thought to be held in Syrian government prisons.
Neither the White House nor the State Department has so far confirmed reports of the meetings in Damascus.
