Two American Tourists Missing En Route From Lebanon to Syria

Two American journalists vacationing in Lebanon went missing this week after informing friends they planned to take a taxi from Beirut to the northern Lebanese city of Tripoli and then cross into Syria, the U.S. Embassy in Beirut said yesterday .

An embassy statement appealed for information about the Americans' whereabouts and said officials were cooperating with Lebanese authorities "to pursue further leads in this investigation."

Holli Chmela, 27, and Taylor Luck, 23, arrived in Lebanon from Amman, Jordan, on Sept. 29 and spent one night in Beirut, according to the Associated Press. They headed to Tripoli on Oct. 1 after notifying a friend of their plans the same day, the embassy said.

Last week, the embassy warned citizens of a potential security threat in Lebanon in the first half of October, following the end of the Islamic fasting month of Ramadan. Deputy Assistant Secretary of State David M. Hale, during a visit to Beirut last weekend, raised concerns with Lebanese leaders over heightened Islamic militancy in northern Lebanon.

Tripoli has been the scene of fighting between militant Islamist groups and militiamen from the Alawite sect of Islam who support Syria.

Luck, who has worked at the Jordan Times for 18 months and was to report to work in Amman over the weekend. Chmela interned at the Jordan Times for three months and left several weeks ago, Samir Barhoumeh, the chief editor, told AP.

Special correspondent Alia Ibrahim in Beirut and staff researcher Terissa Schor in Washington contributed to this report.