Travis Pete Timmerman, from Missouri, says he was imprisoned for seven months after travelling to Syria on a pilgrimage

An American citizen found in the suburbs of Damascus on Thursday says he was detained after crossing into the country by foot on a Christian pilgrimage seven months ago.

The man in question was later identified as Travis Pete Timmerman, aged 29, from Missouri, last seen in the Hungarian capital Budapest in late May.

He appears to be among the thousands of people released from the country’s notorious prisons after rebels reached the Syrian capital over the weekend, toppling President Bashar al-Assad and ending his family’s 54-year rule.

As video of Timmerman emerged online on Thursday, he was initially mistaken by some for Austin Tice, an American journalist who went missing in Syria 12 years ago. The footage showed a group of men gesturing at a shaken-looking pale man with a beard who was laying on the floor, identifying him as “an American journalist”.

In the video, Timmerman could be seen lying on a mattress under a blanket in what appeared to be a private house. A group of men in the video said he was being treated well and would be safely returned home.

There was no immediate comment from US officials travelling with the US secretary of state Antony Blinken in Jordan.