Tice’s kidnapping was planned by Assad forces, BBC investigation finds

LONDON: US journalist and former Marine Austin Tice was abducted in an operation planned for more than a month by forces loyal to former Syrian President Bashar Assad, a BBC investigation reported Thursday. The BBC cited former members of the National Defense Forces, an Assad-aligned militia, and recordings of discussions about the operation. The evidence suggested that Tice’s disappearance was deliberate and that his driver betrayed him. Tice disappeared near Darayya, a Damascus suburb, in Augu