Biden calls on Syrian government to release Tice

President Biden urged the Syrian government on Wednesday to release Austin Tice, a journalist who was abducted in 2012 while reporting on the country’s civil war.

“We know with certainty that he has been held by the Syrian regime,” Biden said in a statement. “We have repeatedly asked the government of Syria to work with us so that we can bring Austin home. I am calling on Syria to end this and help us bring him home.”

Biden said there is “no higher priority” than the return of Tice and other Americans being held hostage or wrongfully detained abroad.

“The Tice family deserves answers, and more importantly, they deserve to be swiftly reunited with Austin,” Biden said. “We stand with Austin’s many loved ones, and we will not rest until we bring Austin home. Ten years is far too long. So is every additional day.”

The National Press Club has been a leading advocate for Tice’s release. The freelance journalist and former Marine won the Club’s John Aubuchon Press Freedom Award in 2015. Tice has worked for The Washington Post, CBS News and McClatchy.

Club Executive Director Bill McCarren said Biden’s statement was a breakthrough in the effort to free Tice.

“We @PressClubDC so appreciate this statement by POTUS, in some ways the strongest language to date by [the U.S. government],” McCarren Tweeted on Wednesday.

McCarren then reiterated that Biden has been invited to a private Club event on Sunday afternoon with Marc and Debra Tice, Austin’s parents, to mark the 10th anniversary of Austin’s abduction. McClatchy CEO Tony Hunter and Georgetown University President John J. DeGioia are among the speakers.

“POTUS can send unmistakable message to Syrians and his own staff by joining Tices on Aug. 14,” McCarren Tweeted. “He has been invited. He knows the way. Our arms are open to you, Joseph R. Biden.”