Despite his good intentions Tom MacMaster, an American studying in Scotland, is apologetic for his hoax that attracted international attention. (Facebook)
An author claiming to be a lesbian Syrian-American who ran a blog titled 'A Gay Girl in Damascus' has been found to be a married American man named Tom MacMaster who lives in Scotland.
The blog gained international attention when someone claiming to be the blogger's cousin posted that the author, Amina Arraf, was kidnapped by Syrian forces off the street.
But skepticism arose when news outlets could not confirm any elements of the story. Following further investigation, it became probable that the blog was a hoax. Extensive work by NPR's Andy Carvin found that the author was most likely a student and peace activist named Tom MacMaster.
On Sunday, MacMaster made a post admitting the blog was fake.
"I never expected this level of attention. While the narrative voıce may have been fictional, the facts on thıs blog are true and not misleading as to the situation on the ground. I do not believe that I have harmed anyone."
MacMaster is a married American man studying at Edinburgh University and made his comments from Istanbul, Turkey, where he said he was on holiday.
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