this is austin's life. this is the baseline of the last time we had a significant conversation between the two countries; right. we can't know what transpired td and the foya can't retrieve that information and asking face-to-face u.s. government officials in the meeting, where are your notes? tell me what you did with your notes on this meeting. were the notes conveyed in the transfer between the biden administration and trump administration? no answers to those questions. that official insists that his were the only notes in the meeting. we since have found a whole other set of notes by another individual in the meeting. it's preposterous of things the government is doing not to help on purpose, to not help so we say today do a lot better than what you're telling this family. i want you to see what can happen with an innovative program that's allowed to go forward and it's not stymied by the government. i'm going to ask carol to come up and join us or do this from wherever is a good place for you to do it

getting austin home. and mike pompeo and john bolton did all they could to keep that from happening. so when donald trump was elected, that was the first thing on my mind was to remind him of how much he loved austin and how much he wanted him home. and they have been talking about austin since he was elected. it's already on his mind. he is already ready to go get him home. so whatever kinds of feelings you may have, this momma has a really good feeling for someone that's going to take care of her child. i would take that from anyone. >> would you say you're cautiously optimistic with the developments in syria? debra: when i think about war, i never have a happy moment. i don't really understand what's happening in syria. i'm upset by the fact that terrorists are killing people in allepo. i don't understand that. i don't understand why our government isn't running in saying we are not going to allow a terrorist entity to take over syria, because why would that be great in the middle east? what's going on

to the north of austin. that's three and a half hours. i can walk eight miles in less than three and a half hours. if i pulled out my google map and say it was going to take three and a half hours to get here, none of you would be here. it is an irrational assumption assuming people are just like machine consumers of travel when all of us are rational consumers of travel. >> i had a question for frank. i feel like one of the biggest changes in sports over the last five years is the legalization of gambling at a state level. so i was curious if you've seen how gambling has effecting the position of the stadium and culture or like sports in general and how that relates to what you've written in your book. >> excellent question. i didn't talk about gambling in the book. i stopped in 2020, but i mean, because a lot of this is very recent. as a historian, i get nervous about writing about the present. in this book, i tried. to me, it's just a furthering of the commercialization of the stadium space that we've see

the heart of austin. that was not the of the program. the intent was to bypass cities and as h1 30 does that. but our state has refused to to seriously consider the idea. i'd like to try to a little hope so. i want to ask you, what successful efforts are you around the country, both of you, and in texas, to maybe stem taxpayer costs for stadiums and, then efforts to not have highways and to put more into public transit, frankly, and to go further? yeah. great question. so, i mean, what we also have seen, which i i'll get to the whole part. so certainly in other cities, stadiums are now imagined, as you know centerpieces of massive real estate developments right. because of the undeniable evidence of the fact that cost more, they are costly money pits. right. and so what now? builders are arguing and franchises politicians like, well, if we can make, the stadium part of a larger real estate development, we can have housing, we can have affordable we have these other things right that stadiums bring. and so

and a lot of people think it's austin, but we want you to look at and see if it's austin and i woke not austin. no, mom, it's not austin, but we had to wake you up. we had to ask you about it. of course, we had so many people reaching out, this is so great, what a wonderful day, and so it's almost like having a rehearsal, you know, of -- of -- just an inkling of what it would really feel like when it is austin walkingy from. >> did it feel like a moment of false hope? i know it was a fleeting moment when you looked at that photo, but even in the moment did it feel like false hope? >> when i see people coming out and even travis is that feeling where as humans we share joy, right? we share suffering, too, but we share joy and just seeing these families reunited. think about travis' family being reunited with him, what incredible yoi incredible joy, and we can share that. >> what do you want people to know about austin as you sit here today, and can you explain to people how you have kept going, how you've been so strong for more than 12 years now? >> austin tice, let's e. he has a ve

we don't think it's austin, but we don't think it's austin. know, and kind of waking up out of the fog and you know, i took a glance and i said no. that is not austin. she said yeah, i know, no, mom, it's not austin, but we had to wake you up, we had to ask you about it. of course, we had so many people reaching out. this is so great. what a wonderful day. so it's almost like having a rehearsal, you know? of just an inkling when it will be austin walking free. >> was it a moment of false hope? it was a fleeting moment before you looked at that photo. did it feel like you had false hope? >> the way i've been feeling about the people that i see coming out and even travis is, you know, that feeling where as humans, we share joy, right? we share suffering, too, but we share joy. just seeing these families reunited. think about travis' family being reunited with him. you know, what incredible joy. we can share that. >> what do you want people to know about austin as you sit here today and can you explain to people how you have kept going? how you h

in a perfect world, we're going to find austin tice.hink i've gone on record numerous times saying i believe he's alive and he's waiting for me to find him. the president said he believes austin is alive. our job in the u.s. government is to keep pressing and pressing and pressing to find out austin's location, his disposition, his status and to bring him home. >> you're referring to them as interim authorities. the head of hts, was described by state department officials as being very pragmatic in those meetings today. but his group and he hadimself still considered a terrorist under u.s. law. do you trust they are being helpful to the u.s. now? >> they were definitely helpful today. we conducted a joint search of a facility that we all thought would have a probable, i guess, some sort of relation to austin tice. so, i understand, of course, their past. what i can tell you is right now they're being helpful in the search for austin. >> so you conducted a joint search with hts of a prison today. did you believe that is where austin was

_ and austin tice? from the conversations _ and austin tice?e? from the conversations i have - and austin tice? from the conversations i have had, | and austin tice? from the l conversations i have had, it and austin tice? from the . conversations i have had, it is a strong desire to get together and get behind a unified approach... studio: us secretary of state antony blinken taking questions there injordan, he is visiting a number of countries in the region to talk about the unfolding situation in syria, which he described as a delicate moment for the country. pictures here of damascus at night, much more on that coming up next, here on bbc news, stay with us. hello there. for many of us, we�*ve probably felt like the weather has been stuck in a rut. it has been very cloudy across many parts of the uk, the exception being really across scotland where there�*s been some sunshine. but certainly this afternoon there�*s been again some rather grey skies and we�*ll keep that cloud really for the rest of the afternoon. across much of england, wales

secretary austin: uss washington is extremely important. as you know, this carrier will be based out of here. the sailors on the ship, many of them have been with the ship as it went through deep maintenance, got the ship ready to go, sailed it over, participated in an exercise in route here, so they are very proud of what they have done. the capability they bring, f-35's are part of this air wing. that is a very capable platform. i think any u.s. naval ship deployed anywhere is a statement of the u.s. commitment. when you send a carrier battle group, it is a strong statement of u.s. commitment. you have seen that in the middle east as we have deployed carriers in and out of theater. recently, we had two carriers deployed in the middle east. >> [indiscernible] what is your latest assessment on being prepared to invade in 2027? secretary austin: we have said all along in accord with the taiwan relations act, our commitment is we will continue to help taiwan obtain the capability it needs to defend itself. that has been our work throughout. w

austin tise disappeared.is believed he is alive. >> there are efforts to find austin tise, and bring him home safely to his loved ones. >> carley, as one who watched the syrian government wage a brutal war on its people during years of conflict, i can tell you, there can be a lot more score settling to do. back to you. >> carley: greg palkot, thank you. bring in austin tise's siblings. thank you for joining us, renewed hope of getting your brother home. m megan, what can you tell us about the effort taking place now to get him back to you? >> i can tell you, there are so many people, family, friends, many, many entities joining us in our continued search and hope in bring ing austin home. >> carley: your brother disappeared in august 2012, while reporting during early years of the syrian civil war. it has been 12 years, what do you know about his location and condition right now? >> well, what we know is that austin is in syria and what we know is that this is a unique time for the freeing of hostages, we're

bringing austin home, the family of austin tice hopeful after another missing american was found in syria. his brother joins me live later this morning all right. 6 a.m. on the east coast, where it is raining in baltimore, maryland, which is what you're looking at right now, the inner harbor on this monday. good morning everyone. i'm kasie hunt. it's wonderful to have you with us. strange lights in the skies, confusion on the ground. after numerous sightings of what appear to be unidentified drones or aircraft in at least six states along the east coast. the federal government is under bipartisan pressure to explain just what the heck is going on. >> the answer, we don't know, is not a good enough answer. when people are anxious, when they're nervous. and this has been true, you know, since we've been a species on this planet. people will fill a vacuum with, you know, their fears and anxieties and conspiracy theories that to say this is not unusual activity, it's just wrong. >> i lived in new jersey my whole life. this is the first time that i've noticed drones over my house. >> if you se

to come home. >> the sister and niece of austin tice speaking to me earlier.foreign ministers this week held the last high level meeting of the alliance before u.s. president biden leaves office next month. they did not heed ukraine's call for a membership invitation. kyiv says it will not settle for anything less than nato membership in any future cease-fire negotiations with russia. ukraine's president says he would accept nato membership for the territory give currently holds as part of a true settlement. canada says it will increase its military and diplomatic presence in the arctic. in statement released friday the country said it plans to deploy naval destroyers, summaries, aircraft and drones the arctic to counter what it considers threats from russia. the canadian government says it will seek deeper collaboration with nordic nations five. of which are nato members. i spoke about these issues with the canadian foreign minister a little earlier. i began by asking her about the nato foreign ministers meeting. >> what we talked about is how much we need to

government also wants to bring austin home.'s really what we're asking for. we're asking for the current administration but also know that president-elect donald trump can also support bringing austin home and so we're actively ask that he do so as well. >> dana: i love seeing the pictures that we put up a lot of pictures of your very handsome brother that i know you miss very much. please stay in touch with us and we'll pray for the best here. thank you. >> thank you. >> thank you. >> if you are asking whether the violence at the capitol on january 6th was part of some operation orchestrated by f.b.i. sources and or agents the answer is emphatically no. >> bill: that was a year ago. the f.b.i. director chris wray denying speculation the f.b.i. played a role in january 6th. there is a new i.g. report raising some interesting questions and we'll get to that in a moment. president-elect donald trump getting very candid on what he thinks the kamala harris campaign did wrong. because i know so many of you have served our country ho

, austin's sister. thank you so much for being with us. i have to say, events have been moving so quickly. let me just ask you simon, first, any new information about austin in just the last 24 hours? >> thank you so much. first of all, for having us on and i would like to say that. yeah, well, we know that austin is alive and we know that austin is in syria. and so at this point, we are encouraging anyone who's in a position to do so to provide him assistance and help him to return safely home to us. >> megan the administration had made comments that they believe the syrian government was holding austin, that syrian government is no more. so who do you believe has there is holding austin now you know, in our opinion it is you know, austin is our brother and we just want to appeal to anyone who has the capability and the authority to help reunite us with him this new rebel group that toppled bashar al-assad megan hayat tahrir al-sham what is your belief of their intentions in regards to the some of thes

so, yes, that's austin.s of fighting to bring him home, have you thought about what it will be like to watch him walk free, to be able to hug him again for the first time? debra: it's so hard to imagine because he was 30 the last time that i hugged him. and he's 43 now. one thing that austin thought was just really funny would be, he would give me this big hug and twirl me around, because isn't that a blast? debra: so, i'm just wondering if he's still going to be thinking about wanting to do that, you know? amna: debra, what keeps you going every day? debra: my faith. my faith is what keeps me going, 100 percent, yes, because i tell people, me, myself, i am at home right now in the dark in my bed in the fetal position sucking my thumb. so what you're seeing right here is really my faith, and that's what and keeps me going, yes. amna: there's a lot more information coming out and going into syria post-assad. if you could speak directly to austin, if you can get a message to him today, what would you say? debr

that's strictly with respect to searching for austin tice, correct? >> yes, of course there's the long-standing military personnel that's been there. i wasn't speaking to that. i'm speaking with respect to diplomatic and other personnel that might have engaged in the search for austin tice or other diplomatic activities. >> just to follow up. the delegation to syria, the brits are doing the same. could you just give us a reason why you would not want to at this stage, it seems obvious reasons, but i'd like to hear you say it, why you wouldn't be sending a direct delegation rather than contacts that you've had. >> let me say two things about that. number one, we have had the ability today to be able to communicate with all of the relevant parties on the ground in syria, including h.t.s. the second thing is i'm not ruling out that we won't send personnel to damascus. stay tuned over the coming days. >> why are you not ready to do so right now? >> i didn't say we weren't. we haven't sent any as of yet, and we will continue to assess the situation. there'

but that's austin.ighting to bring him home, have you thought about what it will be like to watch him be free and be able to hug him again? debra: it is so hard to imagine because he was 30 the last time i hugged him and he is 43 now. one thing austin thought was really funny would be he would give me a big hug and twirled me around. i am wondering if he will still be thinking about wanting to do that. amna: what keeps you going every day? debra: my faith. my faith is what keeps me going 100%. because i tell people, me, myself, i am at home right now in the dark in my bed, in the fetal position sucking my thumb. so what you are seeing right here is really my faith and that is what keeps me going, yes. amna: there is a lot more information coming in and coming out of syria. if you could get a message to austin today, what would you say? debra: we are waiting for you. we have not given up. you are coming home. you're going to go on with your life. and i just want you to know, austin, that i am praying tha

austin tice tice, a journalist, went missing in 2012. the state department says he was imprisoned by the assad regime. his family has been pleading for help ever since he disappeared earlier this week. we learned from top u.s. hostage envoy that the group that has overthrown assad was, quote, being helpful in the ongoing search for tice kidnaped 12 years ago. here now for an update. are austin tice siblings, simon tice and megan tice malone. thank you both for joining us. i want to talk to you about the united states sending their top hostage envoy to syria just last week. have you learned anything new about austin's status in syria from envoy roger carstens, who who was on the ground in syria and talking to the the new leadership there, trying to get some answers? i'll start with you, simon yeah. >> thank you so much for having us. >> um, so we have been very encouraged by the fact that roger has been on the ground in syria, and we are just continuing to push everyone who has any ability to do so to help us find austin and bring him hom

they want to be looking for austin.en, and i found that if you're pushing someone to do something they really don't want to do, you're not going to get a good job anyway. so for the people that dover -- dove right in and got right in there, those are the ones we want to have working for us. >> the implicit suggestion is you think it could backfire if you push the administration more? should they be there? >> i've been pushing for 12 years and four months, and apparently i don't have much strength in my arms, i would say. >> and at this point, your hopes are pinned on the hostage rescue people? our own richard engel went in, as you saw, went in and found a cell that he told had been a place he had been held in as recently as 2022. >> yes. and we were able to verify that. so he was in that prison in 2022. and my children and i because of something that was written on the wall, we do think that austin may have been in that specific cell. >> really? i saw the wall paintings. richard was pointing that out. we're showing it n

military role when it comes to austin tice. reporter: the situation evolves, there could be a role for u.s. or d.o.d. personnel to go in and assist with that? sabrina: today i don't have any role to speak to, though. reporter: recent secretary's trip to japan. could you elaborate on the developments related to discussions on upgrading the alliance and also before the transition, does the pentagon plan to announce any specific direction or decisions on the u.s.-japan control issues? sabrina: i can't speak to future announcements. even though, you know, we still have a few weeks to go before the transition takes place. i'm not aware of any more announcements coming but i'm not going to rule it out either. in terms of the relationship of japan and the upgrading of those headquarters, i think you've heard us speak to that and what we're going to do but that is a phased approach. it's going to take some time to continue to upgrade that joint force headquarters. reporter: two questions. one with the air strikes that centcom and the u

to find austin.successful the israeli counterstrike far across the region. i would like to see a return to the pressure campaign. make the iran regime broke so that it cannot reconstitute its forces and can't spread terrorism. stuart: general jack keane suggested the all-time native should be sent to the mullahs. stop work on your nuclear program or else. that is a pretty pointed thing to say. >> donald trump since of the 90s has been beating the drum, it was north korea coming out is iran cannot be permitted to have nuclear weapons that can threaten the united states. when you have nuclear weapons you don't have to employ them, you can use them coercively and donald trump said that is intolerable. he is right in focusing on that element. all options on the table because you want to put pressure in the right place to make sure the iran regime understands the united states finds that intolerable. stuart: hoauguration. are they close? >> it is so interesting that the incoming president put that pressur

did you believe that that is where austin was being held?know, margaret, we had a lot of information over the last 12 years pointing to a variety of facilities, and nicking that down over 12 years, we came up with a priority list of about six sites, and of those six sites, we felt that this had the highest probability of having held austin at one time. >> margaret: and you can see more of our interview this sunday on "face the nation." austin tice is just one of the thousands missing in syria. cbs's imtiaz tyab spoke with people desperate to find their loved ones who disappeared during bashar al-assad's brutal reign. >> reporter: they come looking for answers. scrutinizing what has become a wall of pain outside a hospital in damascus, hoping in these photos to find some trace of their loved ones. disappeared into syria's notorious prison system during the brutal 13-year civil war. among them is syrian american sana mustafa, posting her own agony on the wall, missing posters of her father ali mustafa, who hasn't been seen or heard from in 11

austin tice has been held in syria for 12 years.er given up hope and told me today there's recent evidence that austin is alive. >> we have not received proof of life. we have absolutely verifiable intel he is. >> reporter: marc and debra tice say their confidence is boosted by unspecified information from the region. >> we heard he was doing well when we had the information.ce is he's safe, he's well. >> reporter: president biden agreeses that tice is alive and said he thinks the u.s. can get him back. the family's request to the president? >> ask the same thing of them as we are of the new authorities in damascus, that is please do everything you can to keep austin safe until he's in our arms and home with us. >> reporter: austin tice went missing on a reporting assignment in syria, august 2012. the last sighting this brief video a month later, alive but appearing to be held captive by unknown parties. we've spoken before, there have been ups and downs as you can testify to. does this feel different somehow? >> it does feel differ

and i'm going to speak to the parents of austin tice. he's been held in syria for more than 12 years. but tonight they believe that he is alive and well. and they're going to tell us why. >> it's time to feed the dogs real food in the right amount. >> a healthy weight can help dogs live a longer, happier life. >> the farmer's dog makes weight management easy with fresh food. pre-portioned for your dog's needs. it's an idea whose time has come. type two diabetes. >> discover the ozempic tri-zone. >> oh oh oh ozempic. >> i got the power of three. >> i lowered my a-1c cv risk and lost some weight. >> in studies, the majority of people reached an a-1c under seven and maintained it. i'm under seven. >> ozempic lowers the risk of major cardiovascular events such as stroke, heart attack, or death in adults. >> also with known heart disease. >> i'm lowering my risk and adults lost up to 14 pounds. i lost some weight. >> ozempic isn't for type one diabetes or children. >> don't share needles or pens or reuse needles. don't take. if you or your fa

now austin is being cared for and that he is well. what can you share about how certain you are that austin is okay well, i mean, it comes from intel that's been verified by many different agencies in the united states. >> they just don't want to share it. they don't want it to be public. but it's verified. it's real. and, um, as recent as august of this year, as recent as august of this year. >> marc, what what makes you feel this confidence? i mean, it's not just that he's alive, but that he's being cared for, that he is. uh, i don't want to use the words in good hands in the context that we're in, but that he is indeed doing well well, that's the information that we've received, you know, based on these reports from from confirmed sources. >> uh, so, you know, we're and it's not just one report, it's it's several times we have heard definitively that he's being taken care of, uh, you know, that he's in good health. >> so we trust that because of the nature of the sources and, you know, right now, of course, we're asking anyone who

reporter: any update on austin tice? antony: only to say every day we're working to bring him home and making sure the word is out for everyone this is a priority for the united states. reporter: are you concerned at all of israel's widespread air strikes and their maneuvers inside this buffer zone that created angner the arab world among u.s. partners. secondly, i'm wondering what your message would be to erdogan and kurdish forces who lost territory against other militias? antony: first, when it comes to the buffer zone that came from the 1974 cease-fire agreement, what israel has said is that the syrian forces that were on one side of that buffer zone abandoned the area and israel is concerned that vacuum could be filled by terrorists and extremists, so it moved forces into the buffer zone and it told us and told others it's a temporary move to make sure the vacuum isn't filled by something bad. when it comes to actions israel has taken, the stated purpose of those actions from the israelis is to make sure equipment d

to reach out directly to assad on austin's behalf. explicitly directly and i did not receive it. >> obviously austin tice's family, i can't even imagine what they're going through right now. what we have been committed to is making sure that americans get home. 75 americans unjustly detained around the world. we have able to do that because this president's leadership. so i think that matters. >> reporter: saying that president biden over the last 44 days of his presidency up until january 20th will continue having these talks to release tice as well as other american hostages wrongfully detained across the world but the tice family is saying they were told in that meeting that they have to wait and see how the situation in syria pans out. so obviously a terrible wait for this family that's still ongoing. >> thank you so much. >>> now to a new report about president biden considering preemptive pardons on officials who could be targets of the incoming trump administration. this could include liz cheney, adam schiff and anthony fauci.

austin is going to have to say. it sounds like he was hired in this situation. he really did not have any connection. he may have benefited from receiving a payment for taking part in this crime. >> everything's all right. peac. >> we'll be following this case closely and bring you updates here. and on true crime news.com. when we come back, they found their mother murdered. now they're determined to find her killer. >> she fought probably until she coul dndn't any longer. >> that's next. >> at humana, we believe your health care should evolve with you and part of that evolution means choosing the right medicare plan for you. humana can help. hi. my name is sam davis, and i'm going to tell you about medicare advantage prescription drug plans that can provide more coverage than original medicare, including prescription drug coverage, all wrapped up into one convenient plan. with original medicare, you're covered for hospital stays and doctor office visits, but you have to meet a deductible for each, and then you're still responsible for 20% of the cost. next, let

. >> austin tice was kidnapped in syria 12 years ago. is president biden so confident as he said yesterday in prepared remarks he's still alive? >> well, that's still the assumptions we're working, he's still alive. the truth is, we want to get more information about him, about his whereabouts, certainly about the conditions in which he may be held, and then try to formulate a plan to get him home where he belongs with his family. that's the going assumption right now that we still have. we have no indication to the contrary, that he's not alive, so we're going to keep working on this very, very hard. >> and we have -- we are reporting at nbc news that u.s. special envoy roger carstons is in beirut right now trying to get more information and to try to secure his location. >> yeah. that's right. look, we, you know, the president talked about this yesterday, a time of risk and uncertainty, but it's also a time of opportunity. not only for the syrian people and, of course, their future and what -- and what a freer, more democratic, better

austin tice has been held in syria for 12 years.have never given up hope and told me today there's recent evidence that austin is alive. >> we have not received a proof of life, we have absolutely verifiable intel that he is. >> mark and debra say their confidence is boosted by unspecified information they've received from the region. >> we did hear that he's doing well, whenever we had the information that he is safe, he is well. >> president biden agrees that tice is alive and over the weekend said he thinks the u.s. can get him back. the family's request to the president -- >> we would ask the same thing of them as we are of the new authorities in damascus, and that is please do everything you can to keep austin safe until he's in our arms, home with us. >> austin tice went missing on a reporting assignment in syria in august 2012, the last sighting, this brief video surfacing about a month later. alive but appearing to be held by captive by unknown parties. >> we've spoken before and there have been some ups and downs, as you ca

>> secretary of defense austin is still there. in fact, speaking saturday, he announced a defense forum, a new ukraine security package. let me show you a minute and a half from saturday. >> i am proud to announce today the commitment of a new ukraine security assistance addition package worth nearly $1 billion. [ applause ] now, that package will provide a framework where drones, rockets for timer systems, and support for crucial maintenance and sustaining. that brings the total of your security assistance committed to ukraine since february 2022 to more than $62 billion. the engine of our efforts has been a ukraine defense contact group, which were spent in april 2022 at ramzi airbase in germany. the context has assured that ukraine has what it needs to defend itself and deter more russian aggression. contact route 24 times now. it's others have committed $57 billion in direct security support, or security systems to ukraine. as a percentage of gdp, more than a dozen contact group members now provide more security assistance to

he's joined the architect of the capitol thomas austin, u.s. forest service chief randy moore, and lawmakers from alaska. the tree as an 80-foot spruce selected from the sorrento island in alaska's tongass national forest. alaska tribal members also make remarks. one of them designed the trees logo. >> ladies and gentlemen, please welcome our honored guests, speaker of the house mike johnson, members of the alaska delegation, senator lisa murkowski, senator dan sullivan, governor mike dunlevy, representative mary stetlerun ft also, chief randy moore of the u.s. forest service, architect of the capitol thomas austin, and youth treat lighter rose burke, fourth-grade student from kenai alaska. [applause] is in general and the honorable thomas austin, architect of the capitol. >> a good evening. welcome to the 60th annual christmas tree lighting ceremony at the as its capital. i am tom austin, the architect of the capitol, and i'm honored to be a this evening as speaker mike johnson likes the 2024 capitol christmas tree with help of our special gue

no update on austin tice except to say every single day we are working to find him and bring him home making sure the word is outt to everyone this is as a priority for the united states. secretary thanks for being here. are you concerned about israel's wives -- strikes and the anger it's created among u.s. partners and i wonder what your message will be for erdogan when it comes to kurdish forces who have lost territory in syria against other malicious? >> first when it comes to the 1974 cease-fire agreement with israel has said is the syrian forces that were on one side of the buffer zone abandoned the area and israel's concerned that could be vacuum filled by extremists and terrorists. they told others it's a temporary move. when it comes to actions that israel is taking the stated purpose of those actions by the israelis is to try to make sure military equipment abandoned peasant fallen is the wrong hands extremist government. we are talking with israel and talking to others about the way ahead and when it comes to turkey. on israel to support: their moe and they have gone after s

he is joined by architect of the capitol thomas austin, randy moore, and lawmakers from alaska .he tree is an 80 foot spruce selected from alaska's national forest. alaskan tribal members also make remarks. one of them designed the tree's logo. >> ladies and gentlemen, please welcome our honored guests, speaker of the house, mike johnson. members of the alaska delegation, senator lisa murkowski, senator dan sullivan, governor mike dunleavy, representative mary stetler, chief randy moore of the u.s. forest service, architect of the capital thomas austin, and the youth tree light, rose, a fourth-grade student from alaska. [applause] [applause] ladies and gentlemen, the honorable thomas austin, architect of the capitol. >> good evening and welcome to the 60th annual christmas tree lighting ceremony at the united states capital. i am the architect of the capitol and i am honored to be here this evening as speaker mike johnson lights the 2020 four o christmas tree with the help of our special guest, rose, this year's christmas tree lighter who came all the way from alaska. it is a ple

and regarding americans, do you have any news on austin tice? >> first question, not that i'm aware. we don't have any additional information about austin since the events in the weekend in syria. and we are working very hard and we hope that developments in syria could lead to some opportunities and some more information but right now, we don't have anything. reporter: are you concerned there isn't more information or more of an update that we're seeing -- [indiscernible] or expected to have more news? >> we are concerned about mr. t inch ce and finding out more about him, his condition. we want to do everything we can to get him back to his family back. would we like to have had more information? you betcha. and we are working hard. we are in touch in and outside of syria to get as much information as we can. but i don't have anything in addition. >> president trump said xi was invited and you said you want a good relationship and better relationship now than four years ago. what is your take? >> i'm not -- it's not my place from the podium he

we've been showing some photos of austin. i think we have some more that your brother actually took while on assignment. you know, looking back on that, that was more than 12 years ago. he's a journalist. um and i'm just wondering you believe he is alive? what is your message to him right now? just if he could see you right now and what you're saying, what do you want to tell austin? >> yeah, i think what we want to say to austin is we are so ready for you to be home. we have been waiting for this moment. we know that you are alive we know that you are well and we are. we are waiting to welcome you back. >> jonathan we miss you. we miss you. we love you we want you home. you're home with us we want you here. there's been too many christmases, marriages, birthdays children born. it's time and we want him home and we miss him. >> i have chills, thank you so much, naomi tice and jonathan tice. we are. we are rooting for you. we are rooting for him to come home. and we hope that as you said in this chaos, that there will be the o

and regarding americans, do you have any news on austin tice? >> first question, not that i'm aware. we don't have any additional information about austin since the events in the weekend in syria. and we are working very hard and we hope that developments in syria could lead to some opportunities and some more information but right now, we don't have anything. reporter: are you concerned there isn't more information or more of an update that we're seeing -- [indiscernible] or expected to have more news? >> we are concerned about mr. t inch ce and finding out more about him, his condition. we want to do everything we can to get him back to his family back. would we like to have had more information? you betcha. and we are working hard. we are in touch in and outside of syria to get as much information as we can. but i don't have anything in addition. >> president trump said xi was invited and you said you want a good relationship and better relationship now than four years ago. what is your take? >> i'm not -- it's not my place from the podium he

austin tice.dent, trey yingst, live outside of the capital and what are you hearing from the administration about the situation on the ground in regard to austin tice? >> john, good afternoon. american officials believe austin tice is still alive. i spoke with one person familiar with the search and they said 100 million location searched at this moment. we visited two of them today. >> after receiving tip from u.s. intelligence source, we arrive national security building in damascus. local residents say this is where assad regime helped most important prisoners. we are looking for information on one in particular, u.s. journalist, austin tice, who was kidnapped in 2012. >> we are underneath the security services building where many of the high profile prisoners were believed to be held under the assad regime. we are looking for austin tice or information about him. >> like many government buildings coach at the basement is a jail and torture and horric conditions but no signs of life. upstairs t