Assad advisor claims US journalist Austin Tice was executed in Syria: Report
An American journalist who went missing in Syria more than a decade ago was executed on orders from then-President Bashar al-Assad. That’s according to Major General Bassam Al Hassan, the man alleged to have overseen Austin Tice’s captivity, as first reported by the BBC on Sunday, June 15.
Who is making the claim?
Major General Al Hassan, a former commander in Syria’s elite Republican Guard and top advisor to ousted president Bashar al-Assad, claims the order to kill Tice came directly from the former Syrian president.
Al Hassan also served as Chief of Staff of the National Defense Forces (NDF), the unofficial military group that a BBC investigation revealed was responsible for imprisoning Tice after his abduction in 2012.
The claim is part of a forthcoming BBC Radio 4 podcast on the disappearance and presumed death of the U.S. journalist.
The case of Austin Tice
Tice went missing near the Syrian capital in August 2012, shortly after his 31st birthday. He was in Syria working as a freelance journalist and set to leave the country when he was taken by members of Assad’s government, according to the BBC.
For years, the Assad regime denied knowledge of Tice’s whereabouts. However, the BBC’s investigation found that he was held in a military facility in Damascus, with Al Hassan overseeing the site.
Al Hassan is currently under sanctions by the United States, United Kingdom, European Union and Canada.
Meetings with US officials
Al Hassan reportedly met with U.S. intelligence officials at least three times earlier this year in Lebanon, including once at the U.S. Embassy. During those meetings, sources told the BBC, Al Hassan informed CIA and FBI officials that Assad ordered Tice’s execution.
Al Hassan allegedly claimed he initially tried to stop the execution but ultimately complied. The BBC’s report does not specify when the execution occurred.
Skepticism over the claims
Western intelligence officials told the BBC that they are skeptical of Al Hassan’s claims, noting that Assad typically avoids giving direct execution orders to maintain plausible deniability.
U.S. officials have not confirmed the claims and efforts to do so are reportedly ongoing.
Tice’s mother speaks out
The BBC tagged along with Tice’s mother as she journeyed to Beirut as the 13th anniversary of her son’s disappearance approaches. After learning of Al Hasan’s meeting with U.S. officials, Debra Tice attempted – unsuccessfully – to meet with Al Hassan.
She says she does not believe Al Hassan’s account, accusing him of telling “the FBI a story that they wanted to hear” to close the case.
The missing American journalist’s mother has worked for more than a decade to bring her son home and continues to carry hope with her. “I am his mother, I still believe that my son is alive and that he will walk free,” she told the BBC.
A diplomatic bargaining chip?
A former NDF member told the BBC that “Austin’s value was understood” and that the journalist was a “card that could be played in diplomatic negotiations with the U.S.”
Al Hassan escaped to Iran following the overthrow of Assad’s regime in December 2024.
The BBC reported that sources close to Al Hassan told the news outlet that while in Iran, he received a call and was asked to meet U.S. investigators in Lebanon. Sources believe there was an agreement between the two parties that Al Hassan would not be detained in exchange for meeting with officials.
US has expressed hope for Tice’s survival
As previously reported by Straight Arrow News, the Biden administration sent a special envoy for hostages to Lebanon in an effort to find Tice in late 2024. It came as Syrian rebels were releasing political prisoners and critics of the Assad government.
In response to the envoy, former President Joe Biden said, “We believe he’s alive.” He added, “We think we can get him back, but we have no direct evidence of that yet.”
U.S. diplomats also traveled to Damascus to meet with rebel leaders as they had hoped to bring home missing Americans in Syria, including Tice.
Ella Rae Greene, Editor In Chief
