(CP) Described as a “Christmas miracle” by his family, American citizen Travis Timmerman has been present in Syria after being unexpectedly detained for seven months while making a pilgrimage in an effort to deepen his Christian faith.
Timmerman, a Missouri native, had been missing since June before resurfacing in a Damascus suburb. Timmerman was held within the notorious Sednaya prison, where the Syrian regime of President Bashar al-Assad has arbitrarily detained tens of hundreds. He was released as rebels overthrew the Assad regime this month.
He told reporters that he crossed mountains into Syria from Lebanon because he was on a non secular pilgrimage influenced by his intensive Bible reading and desire to deepen his understanding of Christianity.
His entry into Syria from Lebanon by foot, nonetheless, led to his arrest and subsequent imprisonment for several months. His detainment got here to light only recently after Syrian rebel forces ousted Assad and the chaotic prison releases that followed.
A resident told NPR’s Ruth Sherlock, on the bottom in Damascus, that he found Timmerman walking barefoot on the street.
The Timmerman family, chatting with NBC News, expressed profound relief and joy upon his release, marking the tip of a harrowing period of uncertainty.
“Feels pretty great! Praise the Lord!” Timmerman’s sister Pixie Rogers said. “I would love for him to know that my whole family and I like him a lot and that we’re blissful to know that we’re going to see him soon.”
Timmerman’s pastor, Don Kelderhouse of Preston Bible Baptist Church, told the network that Timmerman was baptized about over a yr ago and was on fire to share his faith in Christ.
“It’s a miracle. … The undeniable fact that we predict that he hasn’t been abused that is one other miracle,” he told NBC News.
Timmerman’s mother, Stacey Collins Gardiner, told NPR, “It’s a Christmas miracle.”
Gardiner said she received the news from journalists, who called her.
“At first, I used to be hoping it was him, but we didn’t know if it was a scam or what. And then my daughter saw him on the news,” she said. “Not him, but they were talking about Travis. … and I used to be so surprised. I used to be so blissful, I cried too — blissful tears.”
U.S. officials, who remained anonymous, told media that Timmerman had been transferred to Jordan following his release and was currently under the care of State Department officials, in response to Reuters. He was initially handed over to U.S. troops at Tanf garrison near the tri-border area of Syria, Iraq and Jordan before being flown out via U.S. military helicopter.
During his captivity, Timmerman was isolated but not mistreated, but he could hear the sounds of other prisoners being tortured nearby.
The White House said it had no prior knowledge of Timmerman’s presence in Syria.
Timmerman had been incorrectly identified in some media reports as Austin Tice, one other missing American whose fate stays a mystery. This mix-up briefly caused confusion and distress inside the community and amongst journalists closely following each cases.
Before his disappearance, Timmerman had traveled through Eastern Europe, with stops within the Czech Republic and Hungary.
Missouri law enforcement and the Hungarian capital’s police force had been tracking his movements.
