An American who claims to have entered Syria on foot is now free after spending seven months in detention.
In an interview with Al-Arabiya TV on Thursday, Travis Timmerman from Missouri said he had been treated well during his imprisonment. He explained that he crossed into Syria from Lebanon as part of a Christian pilgrimage.
Seated on a bed in a room with disheveled walls and surrounded by reporters, Travis said he had been imprisoned but treated well.
A video of Timmerman circulated online initially sparked speculation that the man might be Austin Tice, a 43-year-old American journalist who vanished in Syria in 2012, shortly after celebrating his 31st birthday.
Hopes for Tice’s release had grown following the overthrow of President Bashar al-Assad’s regime. However, a source close to Tice’s family told NBC News that they do not believe the man in the video is their missing son.
The video featured Timmerman, who later spoke to NBC News Foreign Correspondent Matt Bradley, laid on a bed placed on the floor. Another individual in the video referred to him as “the American journalist,” stating that he was discovered barefoot early Thursday in the town of Dhiyabia, near the Syrian capital, Damascus, by a guard. The man claimed the American was receiving “good treatment.”
After being located in Dhiyabia by NBC News, the man identifying himself as “Travis” explained that he had “been reading the Scripture a lot” before deciding to cross the mountains from Lebanon into Syria. Despite his detention and the reporters surrounding him, Timmerman appeared calm and unfazed by his ordeal.
When a man repeatedly offered to take him to the safety of American custody, he responded that he was fine where he was and could answer more questions.
Timmerman explained that he had been in Europe before beginning his pilgrimage, eventually crossing from Lebanon into Syria in late May. However, he was spotted by a border guard and subsequently detained.
In a separate interview on Thursday, Timmerman told Elizabeth Palmer of CBS of the dramatic moment on Monday when two men armed with AK-47s broke down his prison door with a hammer.
“My door was busted down, it woke me up,” he said. “I thought the guards were still there, so I thought the warfare could have been more active than it ended up being … Once we got out, there was no resistance, there was no real fighting.”
Timmerman explained he had traveled to Syria “for spiritual purposes” and described his time in prison as “not too bad.”
“I was never beaten. The only really bad part was that I couldn’t go to the bathroom when I wanted to. I was only let out three times a day to go to the bathroom,” he said.
After leaving the prison with a large group, Timmerman began walking, aiming to reach Jordan. He admitted to experiencing “a few moments of fear” and said he hadn’t fully processed his freedom.
“I still haven’t really thought about that. I’ve been more worried about finding a place to sleep each night since then,” he told CBS. “So I’ve been working, really.”
Timmerman said he had not been hesitant to seek help on his journey but noted that “they were coming to me, mostly.” He revealed he had spoken with his family three weeks ago using a phone he was permitted to have while in prison.
“I’m feeling well. I’ve been fed and I’ve been watered, so I’m feeling well,” he said.
Earlier this year, authorities in Missouri and Budapest, Hungary, issued missing person reports for a man named Pete Timmerman, whom Hungarian police also identified as “Travis” Pete Timmerman.
The Missouri State Highway Patrol reported in a public bulletin that Timmerman had disappeared from Budapest on May 28, nearly seven months ago. Hungarian authorities noted he was last seen at a church before departing for an “unknown location” and had since shown “no sign of life.”
