The dad and mom of an American man who was present in Syria after going lacking earlier this 12 months mentioned they had been relieved he was secure following a troublesome seven months during which they feared “the worst.”
Travis Timmerman, 29, was found by locals as he walked barefoot within the streets of southern Damascus on Thursday. He mentioned he was saved in jail for months after getting into the nation as a pilgrim.
“Tears, began bawling, it was so emotional,” Timmerman’s stepfather Richard Gardiner instructed CNN affiliate KYTV. “I’m considering the worst, after seven months you simply suppose he’s gone.”
Gardiner mentioned he referred to as Timmerman’s mom, Stacey Timmerman, to interrupt the information. “I referred to as her up and mentioned, ‘It’s him, and he’s alive!’ So we each cried on the telephone,” Gardiner mentioned.
Thousands of individuals have been launched from prisons throughout Syria this week, after rebels toppled the nation’s longtime dictator Bashar al-Assad.
Speaking to CBS News, Timmerman mentioned he had been detained in a Syrian jail after getting into the nation with out permission for “non secular functions,” having crossed its border with Lebanon.
He mentioned his cell door was damaged down on Monday by two males armed with AK-47s, CBS News reported, and left the jail with a big group to attempt to attain Jordan.
