Where Is Austin Tice?: 2. "A Black Box"
Summary
Following the fall of the Assad regime, journalist Josh Baker searches Damascus for missing American Austin Tice using intelligence coordinates. The team investigates notorious prisons and a ghost hospital, uncovering evidence of mass detention and brutality while navigating chaotic security conditions. They also meet US envoy Roger Carstens, who reveals the government lacks definitive proof of Tice’s survival. The episode culminates in a tense raid on an intelligence facility where the team locates Tice’s secret Syrian files.
Topics discussed
Sponsorship and introduction
The fall of the Assad regime
Chaos in Damascus and the search begins
Reviewing intelligence coordinates
Touring the Palestine Branch prison
Searching cells for Austin's traces
Producer's emotional reflection on loss
National search efforts and rewards
Exploring hidden detention sites
False leads and family reactions
Sponsorship segment
New tip regarding a mountain prison
Encounter with armed men on the mountain
Diplomatic pressure and Israeli strikes
Discovering the ghost hospital basement
Files of the dead and forced exit
Reflections on regime brutality
Interview with US Special Envoy
Retrieving Austin's secret files
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