Lebanon: Mediation ongoing for Austin Tice, held in Syria

BEIRUT (AP) — A top Lebanese general says he is still mediating between the United States and Syria over the fate of American journalist Austin Tice who went missing a decade ago in the war-torn country. Washington maintains that Tice is held by Syrian authorities. He went missing sin 2012 at a checkpoint in a contested area west of the Syrian capital of Damascus. A video released a month later showed him blindfolded and held by armed men. He has not been heard from since. Lebanese Maj. Gen. Abbas Ibrahim told reporters in Beirut on Tuesday that his mission on mediating Tice’s release is ongoing but described it as “long and complicated.”