EXCLUSIVE: Carl and Marsha Mueller, the grieving parents of American aid worker Kayla Mueller, have penned a heartfelt open letter to President Donald Trump. They urge him to leverage his upcoming meeting with Syria’s interim leader, Ahmed al-Sharaa, to ensure their daughter’s remains are finally returned, a decade after her tragic death at the hands of ISIS.

The letter, which Fox News Digital has exclusively obtained, precedes al-Sharaa’s inaugural visit to Washington since he assumed leadership following the downfall of the Assad regime. The Muellers described this meeting as a “providential opportunity” to resolve one of the most harrowing stories stemming from the Syrian conflict.

The Muellers revealed that their daughter, Kayla Mueller, aged 26, perished under ISIS captivity, a painful revelation they shared on Tuesday.

“A decade has slipped away since our daughter’s body was laid to rest, its location unknown amidst the crimson hills of Syria,” they expressed. “Kayla’s resting place remains undiscovered, leaving her story unfinished.”

Remembering Kayla

Kayla Mueller, a devoted humanitarian from Arizona, was seized by ISIS in 2013 while assisting Syrian refugees near the Turkish border. She endured captivity under ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, who subjected her to abuse and ultimately took her life in 2015. Tragically, her remains have never been found.

The family’s letter recounts how, in 2019, Operation Kayla Mueller — ordered by President Trump — led to the death of al-Baghdadi in northern Syria. Standing with Trump at the 2020 Republican National Convention, the Muellers credited him for “delivering the iron fist of justice against unspeakable evil.”

Arizona Republican Rep. Abe Hamadeh with Kayla Mueller’s parents on Jan. 3, 2025.   (Kayla Mueller Family)

With Assad’s ouster and Syria now under an interim government, the Muellers say the political landscape has shifted dramatically. They praised growing regional cooperation to locate missing Americans and cited Rep. Abe Hamadeh, R-Ariz., who has personally visited Damascus to advocate for her return.

In a statement to Fox News Digital, Hamadeh said, “I was sworn into Congress with my hand resting on Kayla Mueller’s Bible, with my family and Kayla’s parents standing by my side. I vowed to them that I would do everything I could to bring her home. In their letter to President Trump, Kayla’s parents wrote about how Kayla was killed attempting to ‘bring light to the darkest corner of the earth — and in her own darkest hour her spirit refused to break.’ That is why I refuse to give up on bringing this remarkable young woman home to her family.”

“The Assad regime has fallen, and with new leadership brings new opportunity to write the final chapter on Americans still missing in Syria,” the Muellers wrote. “Through your leadership, we believe the torch Kayla was forced to drop has roared back to life.”

Mueller in the brief video. (Mueller Family/ABC News)

The Muellers described Trump’s meeting with al-Sharaa as a defining moment — both for U.S. foreign policy and for their family’s decade-long quest for closure.

They ended the letter with a plea: “Your meeting is sure to inspire real hope across Syria’s war-torn streets. Bringing Kayla’s body home will do the same for every American heart, and together we will slam shut the era of terror’s reign in Syria and finally bring closure to Kayla’s story. This is a moment to reaffirm America’s resolve: that we never abandon our own. One more push could bring Kayla home.”