The citizen has been reunited to his family and is not Austin Tice, the former United States marine turned photojournalist who disappeared from regime-held territory in 2012 while covering the conflict, according to Reuters.

A United States based government security source, who was not authorized to speak on the matter, told Fox News there were some talks taking place but the individual’s identity has not been released.

Another source who works tightly with the White House on hostage matters also noted that it is believed that there are at least three Americans, including Tice, likely held by the Assad regime. One includes a medical professional and in late May it was rumored that a United States citizen was taken from a hotel by regime forces in the Kurdish-dominant area of Qamishli, but his disappearance was never verified.

The United States State Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

While details on this case are yet to be made clear, analysts and experts alike have widely praised the Trump administration’s efforts to release U.S. citizens from unlawful detention by state and non-state actors.

To date, more than 21 hostages held abroad have been freed throughout Trump’s first term. They range from a former CIA officer, Sabrina de Sousa, who was held in Portugal for more than 18 months at the request of Italian prosecutors and an Egyptian-American charity worker Aya Hijazi who was imprisoned in Cairo for three years.

Then there was American businesswoman Sandy Phan-Gillis who was released from China, and Caitlin Coleman and her family her were discharged by the Haqqani network in the Pakistan-Afghanistan area in 2017.

“What has changed under the Trump administration is the level of personal interest and engagement from the President. Trump has made it clear that he views the return of American hostages as a priority and regularly touts his success,” Joel Simon, the executive director of the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) and author of “We Want to Negotiate: The Secret World of Kidnapping, Hostages and Ransom,” told Fox News.

“The hostage families I speak with appreciate the attention the President gives the issue, but some policy experts worry that the same attention could increase the risk by making clear the potential value of American hostages.”

Indeed, there are still many more U.S. citizens that need to be brought home, although Washington does not release exact numbers as to how many Americans are being unlawfully held abroad.