<ul class="summary-list"><li>The White House held secret talks with the Syrian government earlier this year in an attempt to discuss the fate of two American hostages, the therapist Majd Kamalmaz and journalist <keyword id="4688986" type="PERSON" weightage="60" keywordseo="austin-tice">Austin Tice</keyword>.</li><li>But regional security officials and diplomats are skeptical the Syrians will even enter serious negotiations with the US in the first place.</li><li>I would know: in the years after Tice's disappearance I was occasionally involved in efforts to contact the Syrian government and hopefully secure his release. The Syrians never gave me anything.</li><li>Sources told Insider that if <keyword id="6354913" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="syria">Syria</keyword> were willing to return Tice and Kalmamaz — if they are even alive — it would likely ask the US to withdraw its troops from the country, relieve sanctions, and even help it make peace with Israel.</li><li>A European diplomat said that Syria could confuse erratic US behavior in the Middle East for a chance to get concessions from the White House. "Bashar sees Trump as someone stupid who wants to leave Syria," they said.</li></ul>The Trump administration <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/top-white-house-official-traveled-to-syria-us-hostage-talks-2020-10">secretly dispatched senior officials to Syria</a> earlier this year in an attempt to discuss the fate of two American hostages, but regional security officials and diplomats are skeptical the Syrians will enter serious negotiations.The meeting between Trump's top counterterrorism advisor, Kash Patel, and senior Syrian officials in Damascus —first <a href="https://www.wsj.com/articles/top-white-house-official-flew-to-syria-for-talks-to-free-u-s-hostages-11603058616">reported by The Wall Street Journal</a> on Sunday — was the first direct, high-level contact between the US and Syria in a decade.The US has repeatedly bombed Syria, imposed sanctions and arms embargoes against it, and has troops occupying parts of it.One of the hostages in Syria is Majd Kamalmaz, a Syrian-American therapist who disappeared at a Syrian government checkpoint in 2017, according to The Journal.The other is <a href="https://www.austinticefamily.com/">Austin Tice</a>, a <a href="https://www.marinecorpstimes.com/news/your-marine-corps/2020/08/14/for-8-years-former-marine-capt-austin-tice-has-been-held-hostage/">former US Marine officer</a> turned law student and freelance journalist who disappeared during a reporting trip in rebel-held Syrian territory in 2012.<div type="image" title="In this photo released by the Syrian official news agency SANA, Syrian President Bashar Assad speaks during an interview with Russia24 TV and Rossiya Segodnya news agency, in Damascus, Syria, Friday, Nov. 15, 2019. Assad said the American presence in Syria will lead to armed &quot;resistance&quot; that will eventually force the U.S. troops to leave. (SANA via AP)" height="2000" width="2666" msid="78754494" hostid="261"></div>Tice, who worked for news outlets like McClatchy Newspapers and The Washington Post, is believed to have been arrested at a Syrian regime checkpoint.As a correspondent for McClatchy Newspapers covering Syria in the years that followed his disappearance, I was occasionally involved in efforts to make contact with the Syrian government and its intelligence services to learn more about Tice's fate and, ideally, negotiate his release.But over time, with only rumors and a never-ending stream of grifters trying to sell fabricated information to show for it, it became clear that the Syrian regime would not even confirm Tice's arrest, let alone provided proof of life without the involvement of senior US officials.The White House would likely run into the same problems.<div type="image" title="FILE - In this file photo released Monday Nov. 9, 2019 by the Syrian official news agency SANA, Syrian President Bashar Assad speaks in Damascus, Syria. Assad has his prime minister Thursday, June 11, 2020, a month ahead of elections as country's economic crisis worsens.(SANA via AP, File)" height="1805" width="2406" msid="78754496" hostid="261"></div>The Journal's report of the White House trip to Damascus came days after Abbas Ibrahim, <keyword id="30174" type="COUNTRY" weightage="60" keywordseo="Lebanon">Lebanon</keyword>'s most powerful security chief, visited Washington, DC, for the first time to meet with senior US officials responsible for negotiating hostage releases.According to a European diplomat in Beirut, Ibrahim is attempting to use his close relationship with Syrian officials to make himself invaluable to the US to avoid scrutiny of his own country.The diplomat asked not to be named because they lack official permission to speak to the press, but their identity is known to Insider.A senior Lebanese political figure echoed the diplomat's remarks about Ibrahim in a separate conversation with Insider, and added that hostage negotiations between the White House and Syria would likely involve Syria asking the US to withdraw troops.This person also asked not to be named, citing the sensitive nature of the topic, but their identity is known to Insider."Can there be a deal with Syria and the Americans? I know the Syrians had Austin Tice but there's been nothing on him for all these years," the Lebanese political figure said."If he's alive, the Syrians will want to trade him for the American troops leaving [northeastern] Syria and a dropping of sanctions. One journalist won't be enough for this, so any talks would be very complex."<div type="image" title="syria idlib strike" height="714" width="1200" msid="78754498" hostid="261"></div>The European diplomat also noted that that some Middle East factions might be confusing erratic US behavior in the region for a chance to get concessions from the White House.Referring to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and US President Donald Trump, the diplomat said: "Bashar sees Trump as someone stupid who wants to leave Syria," describing conversations they have had with Lebanese and Syrian officials close to Assad."He [Assad] also knows that Trump has an election and wants hostages released for the voters," the diplomat said. "They sent senior White House aides to Damascus to talk!""But besides the question of whether he actually has these two people, who might have died in custody ... I'm not sure there would be real sanctions relief or the departure of US forces from the coalition against ISIS. And I am not sure the Syrians will be willing to talk at all unless troops leaving and sanctions lifted are part of the plan."<a href="https://twitter.com/Dannymakkisyria/status/1318154272765247488?s=20">Analysts who closely track Damascus</a> and regime media said that it was clear the Syrians were refusing to discuss the hostages until there was a withdrawal agreement.;<blockquote class="twitter-tweet blockquote" data-lang="en" data-cards="" data-conversation="">—Danny Makki (@Dannymakkisyria) <a href="https://twitter.com/mims/statuses/1318153820925550593?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 19, 2020</a></blockquote><blockquote class="twitter-tweet blockquote" data-lang="en" data-cards="" data-conversation="">—Danny Makki (@Dannymakkisyria) <a href="https://twitter.com/mims/statuses/1318154180251553793?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 19, 2020</a></blockquote>This raises an additional question: if the release of Tice and Kamalmaz will require lifting sanctions and withdrawing US troops from Syrian territory, what can the Assad regime offer in addition to the apparent hostages?A former Israeli intelligence official, who works as reservist for the Israel Defense Forces, said Assad would likely adopt the tactics often used by Hezbollah in its negotiations with Israel over hostages: Refuse to concede anything for free."Whenever Hezbollah took some of our guys, they'd never offer proof of life or anything on their condition," said the official, who worked on a <a href="https://uk.reuters.com/article/uk-lebanon-israel/israel-and-hezbollah-sign-prisoner-swap-deal-idUKL0743478820080707">prisoner-swap deal between Hezbollah and Israel</a> in 2008. This source asked not to be named because they do not have permission to speak to the media, but their identity is known to Insider."They make you pay for everything," the official said of Hezbollah. "You want to find out their condition? Alive or dead, you pay the full price for them. I expect Bashar will do the same here. You want information on this Austin Tice? Leave Syria and I'll tell you what we know.""And the only thing Bashar can offer worth leaving Syria and dropping the sanctions for would be to resolve the Golan Heights, make peace with Israel, kick out the Iranians, and crack down on Hezbollah," said the Israel official."We keep hearing this rumor even here in Israel and I am sure Bashar would love to haggle or get some sanction relief, but I doubt he could deliver if he wanted to," he said. "How can he kick out the Iranians and Hezbollah? They saved his regime and are stronger than his forces."The EU diplomat said they had heard the same rumors of some sort of region-resetting agreement being pitched, but said it sounded too complex to be realistic."Israel and the US aren't signing anything that doesn't manage Iran and Hebzollah," said the diplomat."And even if Bashar agreed to try — which I really doubt, no matter how much he wants sanction relief — Hezbollah would just kill him and replace him with Maher," they said, referring to Assad's older brother.

The White House is trying to negotiate hostage releases from Syria, but regional officials don't think Assad will take the talks seriously

<ul class="summary-list"><li>A top <keyword id="6356037" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="60" keywordseo="white-house">White House</keyword> official met with the Assad regime in <keyword id="6354913" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="syria">Syria</keyword> recently to negotiate the release of US hostages, according to Trump administration officials and others, The <a href="https://www.wsj.com/articles/top-white-house-official-flew-to-syria-for-talks-to-free-u-s-hostages-11603058616?mod=hp_lead_pos1">Wall Street Journal</a> reported.</li><li>The secret meetings represent the first time such a high-level US official has met with the Assad regime in Syria in more than a decade.</li><li>The talks were to secure the release of US hostages, including <keyword id="4688986" type="PERSON" weightage="60" keywordseo="austin-tice">Austin Tice</keyword>, a former Marine and freelance journalist who disappeared in 2012, and Majd Kamalmaz, a Syrian-American therapist who disappeared in 2017.</li></ul>A top White House counterterrorism official recently met with the Assad regime in Syria to negotiate the release of US hostages, The <a href="https://www.wsj.com/articles/top-white-house-official-flew-to-syria-for-talks-to-free-u-s-hostages-11603058616?mod=hp_lead_pos1">Wall Street Journal</a> reported Sunday.Kash Patel, a deputy assistant to President Donald Trump and top White House counterterrorism official, traveled to Damascus earlier this year for the secret negotiations, Trump administration officials and others familiar with the secret meetings told The Journal.Patel met with the isolated government in a bid to secure the release of at least two Americans believed to be held <keyword id="6362001" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="hostage">hostage</keyword> by the Assad regime, according to The Journal. It was not immediately clear when the secret negotiations were held, nor with whom Patel met with in his time there.It was the first time in a decade that such a high-level US official has met with President <keyword id="6384643" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="bashar-al-assad">Bashar al-Assad</keyword>'s government in Syria, with the last documented meeting in Syria between US and Syrian officials having occured in 2010. The US pulled back from diplomatic relations with Syria in 2012, objecting to Assad's treatment of people protesting his regime.The hostages include Austin Tice, a former Marine and freelance journalist who was reporting in Syria when he went missing in 2012, and Majd Kamalmaz, a Syrian-American therapist who disappeared at a <keyword id="223003" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="60" keywordseo="Syrian-government">Syrian government</keyword> checkpoint in 2017, according to The Journal.The Syrian government is believed to have at least four other Americans held captive, citing The Journal report."This administration is committed to our dad's case, and we continue to speak with officials at the highest levels of the U.S. Government to bring dad home," Ibrahim Kamalmaz, one of Kamalmaz's sons, told The Journal.Representatives from the White House and the State Department did not immediately return requests for comment.In March, Trump said he was "working very hard with Syria" to secure the release of Austin Tice, saying he had recently sent a letter to the Syrian government about the matter, according to The <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/trump-asks-syrian-government-to-work-with-us-to-free-journalist-who-disappeared/2020/03/19/980c5a4c-6a0e-11ea-b5f1-a5a804158597_story.html">Washington Post</a>."There is no higher priority in my Administration than the recovery and return of Americans missing abroad," Trump said in an August <a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefings-statements/statement-from-the-president-081420/">statement</a>.

A top White House counterterrorism official reportedly met with the Assad regime in Syria for US hostage talks

<ul class="summary-list"><li>Brittney Griner spent 10 months detained in Russia after officials found cannabis oil in her luggage.</li><li>The WNBA superstar returned to the United States by way of a prisoner exchange in early December.</li></ul>Brittney Griner is writing a book.The WNBA superstar spent 10 months in Russian custody after officials at a Moscow airport found cannabis oil in her luggage. She was <a href="https://www.insider.com/brittney-griner-russia-what-status-change-wrongfully-detained-means-2022-5">deemed "wrongfully detained" by the US government</a> after months of standstill in the Russian courts, and after losing her initial trial and subsequent appeal, Griner was sent to fulfill her <a href="https://www.insider.com/brittney-griner-guilty-sentence-9-years-russian-prison-drug-smuggling-trial-2022-8" rel="">nine-year sentence in a Russian penal colony</a>.A <a href="https://www.insider.com/brittney-griner-freed-prisoner-exchange-russia-united-states-2022-8">high-profile prisoner swap</a> — exchanging notorious Russian arms dealer Viktor Bout — brought Griner back to the United States in early December. Shortly thereafter, she announced her intention to <a href="https://www.insider.com/brittney-griner-wnba-return-pay-cut-phoenix-mercury-2023-2">return to the basketball court</a> and <a href="https://www.insider.com/brittney-griner-wnba-return-phoenix-behind-the-scenes-details-2023-2">her WNBA franchise, the Phoenix Mercury</a>.<div type="image" title="Brittney Griner." height="1665" width="2221" msid="99416412" hostid="261"></div>Now, four months after returning home, Griner says she's "ready to share" her harrowing experience."I arrived in Moscow to rejoin <a href="https://www.insider.com/brittney-griner-wnba-stars-team-owned-russian-oligarch-superstar-treatment-2022-3">the UMMC Ekaterinburg basketball team</a> and was immediately detained at the airport," Griner said in a release from her publisher, Alfred A. Knopf. "That day was the beginning of an unfathomable period in my life which only now am I ready to share."According to the release, Griner's yet-to-be-named memoir will take readers on "her raw, emotional journey from Olympic champion to hostage to her life today." Not only will she detail her detainment "in vivid detail," but she'll also discuss "the personal turmoil she experienced during the near 10-month ordeal and the resilience that carried her through to the day of her return to the United States last December."<div type="image" title="Brittney Griner deboards the plane and takes her first steps back on US soil." height="1666" width="2222" msid="99416413" hostid="261"></div>Griner also intends to address "the issue of pay equity for women athletes in the United States — the very inequity that led Griner to play basketball in Russia for seven previous seasons and to return for an eighth on that fateful February day."Additionally, Griner has worked to "raise awareness surrounding other Americans wrongfully detained abroad" since returning home. This book, she hopes, will aid in those efforts.In the release, she listed several of the wrongfully detained Americans by name: "Paul Whelan, Evan Gershkovich, Emad Shargi, Airan Berry, Shahab Dalili, Luke Denman, Eyvin Hernandez, Majd Kamalmaz, Jerrel Kenemore, Kai Li, Siamak Namazi, Austin Tice, Mark Swidan and Morad Tahbaz."Griner's book is set to come out in spring 2024.

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The White House is trying to negotiate hostage releases from Syria, but regional officials don't think Assad will take the talks seriously

Mitch Prothero

A top White House counterterrorism official reportedly met with the Assad regime in Syria for US hostage talks

Kelsey Vlamis

Brittney Griner is writing a book that will detail her 'unfathomable' 10-month detainment in Russia

Meredith Cash