2 U.S. journalists missing in Lebanon
The families of Taylor Luck, 23, and Holli Chmela, 27, ask for help in finding them. The pair work for an English-language newspaper in Jordan and were last seen several days ago in Beirut.
BEIRUT -- The families of two American journalists missing in Lebanon for several days are asking the public for help in finding them, U.S. officials announced today.
Taylor Luck, 23, and Holli Chmela, 27, have both been living in Amman, Jordan and working as writers for the Jordan Times, an English-language daily newspaper.
They arrived in Beirut on Sept. 29 for a holiday and disappeared on Oct. 1 after telling an acquaintance they were leaving the Lebanese capital for the northern coastal cities of Byblos and Tripoli on a trip that was to take them through northern Syria and back to Jordan, according to a statement released by the U.S. Embassy in Lebanon.
The pair had planned to be back to work in Amman on Oct. 4.
Northern Lebanon, favored by tourists for its verdant mountains, historic sites and Mediterranean beaches, has also become a flash point of conflicts between Islamic extremists and the government. Authorities suspect Islamic militants were behind a Sept. 29 bomb explosion in Tripoli that killed seven people aboard a bus. After that attack, the U.S. Embassy suspended all travel by its personnel to the city and advised Americans to avoid it.
U.S. officials were collaborating with Lebanon's Internal Security Force and diplomats in Amman, Damascus and Washington to find the two, according to the press release.
daragahi@latimes.com
