DAMASCUS, Syria — An American man who identified himself as Travis Pete Timmerman was found in a suburb of the Syrian capital Damascus by local residents on Thursday.

The 29-year-old from Missouri's Ozarks had last been seen in Budapest, Hungary. He said he was detained earlier this year after crossing into Syria on foot from Lebanon and held in prison until the fall of the Assad regime.

Family and friends of the Missouri man who had been imprisoned in Syria after he said he crossed into the country on a "pilgrimage" to Damascus hailed his unexpected recovery as a "Christmas miracle" Thursday after about seven months with no contact.

Travis Timmerman, 29, from Missouri, was found this week by residents wandering barefoot in a suburb south of Syria's capital.

Travis Timmerman, a missing American from Missouri, was freed from a Syrian prison and found Thursday outside of Damascus trying to make his way out of the country on foot.

A man identifying himself as Missourian Travis Timmerman tells CBS News he was liberated from a Syrian prison upon dictator Bashar al-Assad's ouster.

American Travis Timmerman was found in Syria Thursday after being imprisoned for several months after entering the country on a 'pilgrimage' to Damascus.