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Today marks two years since former Marine Austin Tice disappeared while working as a freelance journalist in Syria.
Debra and Marc Tice have written a letter to their son published by McClatchy in the hopes that somehow their words can reach him, wherever he is.
“From hard tips about your possible whereabouts to simple prayers for your well-being, we have received an overwhelming show of support from every continent on the planet,” they wrote. “We are eternally grateful to every person who has reached out – and we fully expect even more people to come forward in the coming weeks and months. The piece of information that will bring you home safely is out there, somewhere. Rest assured that we will find it.”
Tice left the Marine Corps as a captain in January 2012, according to his Linkedin profile. During his seven years in the Corps, Tice deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan, served as a joint terminal attack controller, and an infantry platoon and company commander.
He arrived in Syria in May 2012 and was last heard from on Aug. 13 of that year. That October, he was seen in a 47-second YouTube video, in which he was seen blindfolded and surrounded by armed men. It was unclear whether his captives were rebels or forces loyal to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.
After reciting a prayer in Arabic, Tice said: “Oh Jesus, oh Jesus.”
