Syria - live: US man Travis Timmerman found after months in Assad prison as rebels set to suspend constitution
American Travis Timmerman was found by Syrian rebels, as Israel continues its bombardment around much of the country
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Your support makes all the difference.An American who was detained in Syria for seven months has been freed, as Syrian rebels scour areas once controlled by Bashar al-Assad’s now-deposed regime.
Travis Timmerman, from Missouri, was found when trying to find his own way out of Syria after being freed from a prison by Syrian rebels.
He was initially mistaken by some on social media to be American journalist Austin Tice, who disappeared in Syria in 2012.
Mr Timmerman was detained when he entered Syria without permission for “spiritual purposes” seven months ago, he told CBS News. He was freed by two armed men with AK-47s on Monday after a stretch in prison which “wasn’t too bad”.
Meanwhile, the newly formed administration of Syria is planning to suspend the country’s constitution and parliament.
A source close to the Syrian government told Reuters news agency that a new committee of experts would make amendments to the constitution, but did not reveal what this might consist of.
It comes as the Turkish foreign minister, intelligence chief and Qatar’s head of state security are set to meet rebel leader Abu Mohammed al-Golani and caretaker prime minister Mohammed al-Bashir in Damascus on Thursday.
Israeli forces seize buffer zone along occupied Golan Heights after Assad’s downfall
I asked Republicans about Tulsi Gabbard’s remarks on Syria. This is what they said
These Syrians watched their town be destroyed in war as Assad kept them away. Now they are vowing to rebuild
Syria doesn’t have to become a jihadi hellhole
Kurds in Syria face an uncertain future
The jihadi rebels who toppled Syrian President Bashar Assad say they want to build a unified, inclusive country. But after 14 years of civil war, putting that ideal into practice will not be easy. For Syria‘s Kurdish minority - America’s closest ally in the country - the struggle for a new order is entering a potentially even more challenging phase.
Over the course of Syria‘s civil war, Kurdish fighters have fended off an array of armed factions, partnered with the US to rout the Islamic State group and carved out a largely autonomous region in the country’s oil-rich east. But the gains of the non-Arab Kurds are now at risk. The ascendance of the Sunni Arab rebels who overthrew Assad — with vital help from Turkey, a longtime foe of the Kurds — will make it hard for the Kurds to find a place in the new Syria and could prolong the conflict.
The jihadi rebels who rode into Damascus over the weekend have made peaceful overtures to the Kurds. But the rebels violently drove Kurdish fighters out of the eastern city of Deir al-Zour days after government forces abandoned it. To the north, a separate opposition faction backed by Turkey that has been battling the Kurds for years seized the town of Manbij. And Turkey carried out airstrikes on a Kurdish convoy it said was carrying heavy weapons looted from government arsenals. The Kurds have long counted on US aid in the face of such challenges.
Around 900 American troops are in eastern Syria, where they partner with Kurdish forces to prevent an Islamic State resurgence.
But the future of that mission will be thrown into doubt under president-elect Donald Trump, who has long been skeptical about US involvement in Syria.
Safeguarding Russian bases and diplomats in Syria paramount: Kremlin
The Kremlin says ensuring the security of Russia’s military bases and diplomatic missions in Syria is of paramount importance.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Moscow was maintaining contacts with those in charge in Syria and that it was hopeful stability would be achieved.
Russia, whose airforce carried out strikes against advancing Syrian rebels earlier this month, before Bashar al-Assad’s regime was toppled, has a key air base in Latakia province and a naval facility at Tartous, its only Mediterranean repair and replenishment.
The Kremlin also took aim at Israel’s strikes against the Golan Heights region, in the border area abbutting Israel and Lebanon, after Israeli forces moved into the territory to prevent militant groups from occupying regions along the border which could be used to launch offensives into its territory.
Russia said Israel’s actions on the front were unlikely to contribute to Syria’s stabilisation.
Who is Mohammed al-Bashir? Syria’s new interim PM who has connections to both Assad and the rebels
After more than half a century of the Assad family ruling over Syria, a little-known local politician has been named as the country’s interim leader and tasked with ushering in a stable government.
Three days on from rebels completing a sweeping offensive forcing Bashar Al-Assad, who succeeded his father as ruler, out of Syria and out of office, the country is looking to ensure a peaceful transition of power.
Mohammed al-Bashir, a politician who has been governing the rebel-controlled province of Idlib in northwest Syria, from which the offensive began, from January this year, has been made responsible for that transition.
In a brief address on state television on Tuesday, he announced that representatives of the rebels and the ousted government had agreed for him to act as caretaker until 1 March.
Tom Watling reports:
Who is Mohammed al-Bashir? Syria’s new interim PM tasked with ensuring peace
Mohammed al-Bashir, a politician in his 40s from the northwest Syrian province of Idlib, has agreed to become caretaker prime minister until March next year
Rights group says Syrian refugees should not be forcefully sent back
As debate swirls over what to do with millions of displaced Syrian refugees seeking asylum in Western nations, Human Rights Watch said earlier today no government should send Syrian refugees back forcefully.
The statement comes after several European nations, including the UK and Germany, this week announced plans to pause asylum applications for Syrian citizens.
“Every citizen has the right to return to their home country, safe or not. But because one refugee chooses to repatriate is no justification to forcibly return another who remains fearful, as many Syrian refugees do, especially given the country’s unstable and possibly dangerous conditions,” the group said.
“This approach carries real risks, especially given how keen some European states are to declare Syria safe and begin returns,” it said, adding that Syria remains “inherently volatile”.
EU to discuss Syria’s future - but too early to lift sanctions
Foreign ministers in the European Union will discuss a common position on how to approach Syria’s transformation as the country embarks on a new era.
France’s foreign ministry spokesperson Christophe Lemoine told a news conference on Thursday that it is too early to discuss lifting the sanctions imposed on Syria.
The EU first issued sanctions against Syria in May 2011.
Travis Timmerman: American who travelled to Syria on Christian pilgrimage freed from Assad jail
An American who spent seven months in a Syrian prison after crossing into the country on foot on a Christian pilgrimage has been found.
Travis Timmerman, who was found in the town of Dhiyabiya, says he was one of thousands of people released from Syrian prisons after rebel groups ousted the brutal regime of Bashar al-Assad after a 13-year civil war on the weekend.
Speaking with CBS, Mr Timmerman revealed that he was freed by two men with AK-47s on Monday, after being detained when he entered Syria for “spiritual purposes”. He told Al-Arabiya TV network that he crossed into Syria on foot from the eastern Lebanese town of Zahle.
After being detained and spending seven months in prison, Timmerman’s “door was busted down”, he told CBS. “I thought the guards were still there, so I thought the warfare could have been more active than it ended up being.
Read the full report:
Travis Timmerman: US pilgrim discovered after months in Syrian jail
Travis Timmerman was initially mistaken by some for missing US journalist Austin Tice when he was found in Syria
Israeli incursion into Golan Heights buffer zone is logical, says US
Israel’s incursion into the Golan Heights buffer zone is logical and in keeping with its right to self defence, the US national secuity adviser Jake Sullivan said on Thursday.
Mr Sullivan, who met with Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Thursday, is visiting the Middle East to discuss the situation in Syria and a ceasefire deal in Gaza.
He told reporters that the US is in deep consultation with Israel over its actions in Syria, adding that the US expects Israel’s seizure of the buffer zone to be temporary.
Israel seized the buffer zone separating the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights from Syria proper on Sunday, hours after Bashar al-Assad’s regime was deposed by Syrian rebels.
Israel described reports that it had moved beyond the buffer zone as “false”, before later stating troops had been deployed beyond the buffer zone into Syria to create a “sterile defence zone”.
In pictures: Funeral of activist Mazen al-Hamada
The funeral of Syrian activist Mazen al-Hamada, whose dead body was found inside the notorious Sednaya prison after the fall of Bashar al-Assad’s regime, took place on Thursday.
Mr Hamada, who escaped Syria after months of torture and abuse - physical, mental and sexual - in Syrian prisons, sought Asylum in the Netherlands.
But upon returning to Syria in 2020, Mr Hamada disappeared. One going theory posed that Mr Hamad was lured back to Syria with the promise of other detainees being released if he did so.
A symbol of the brutality of Assad’s dictatorship, Mr Hamada is believed to have been executed days before his body was discovered on Monday.
Turkish and Qatari officials to meet rebel leaders in Damascus
Turkey’s foreign minister, intelligence chief, and Qatar’s head of state security will meet with Syrian rebel leader Abu Mohammed al-Golani and caretaker prime minister Mohammed al-Bashir in Damascus, the Syrian information ministry said.
The Turkish foreign ministry has confirmed that minister Hakan Fidan is in Damascus.
It comes after Turkish intelligence chief Ibrahim Kalin was revealed to be in Damascus by two sources speaking to Reuters.
Turklish media outlet Yeni Safak said Mr Kalin was at the Ummayyad Mosque in Damascus, where a Reuters reporter saw at least one car moving towards the mosque amid heavy security and large crowds.
It was not immediately clear who was in the car.
In pictures: American Travis Timmerman found in Syria
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