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Less than 24 hours after dropping sanctions on Syria, President Donald Trump met with the country’s new leader, Ahmed al-Sharaa.
Some shit you should know before you read: Just to give you a brief recap, Julani rose to power following the overthrow of longtime Syrian ruler Bashar al-Assad. He led a coalition of rebel forces (many classified as terrorists) in an offensive that brought an end to Assad’s 23-year brutal rule. Julani has ties to many terror organizations, including al-Qaeda in Iraq (AQI), and led Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), a designated terrorist organization. Under his command, the group has been accused of committing atrocities, including massacres of pro-Assad loyalists and sectarian killings—particularly targeting the Alawite minority and the Druze. Despite all of this, his supporters argue that he has distanced himself from extremist ideology and credit him with ending Assad’s regime. At one point, Julani had a $10 million bounty on his head from the US government.
What’s going on now: In a historic moment that hasn’t been seen in 25 years, Trump met with Syrian President al-Sharaa in Riyadh. The two spoke briefly before a scheduled Gulf Cooperation Council summit, a meeting that lasted roughly 30 minutes. This direct talks followed Trump’s announcement that the United States would lift long-standing sanctions on Syria, imposed during the Assad era, effectively ending the country’s economic and diplomatic isolation.
During their conversation, President Trump and President al-Sharaa discussed a range of topics centered around regional stability, counterterrorism, and economic recovery. Trump encouraged al-Sharaa to seize what he described as a “tremendous opportunity” to rebuild Syria and urged him to join the Abraham Accords, a US-brokered initiative to normalize relations between Israel and Arab nations.
Trump also called on al-Sharaa to expel all foreign terrorist elements from Syrian territory and to prevent a resurgence of ISIS. In turn, al-Sharaa pledged to combat terrorism, eliminate chemical weapons, and open Syria’s energy sector to US investment. He also said he was committed to the 1974 disengagement agreement with Israel and expressed interest in positioning Syria as a trade bridge between East and West.
