High-level US delegation meets rebel leader in Damascus
Last Updated on December 23, 2024 6:19 am
A high-level US delegation has met with Ahmed al-Shara, the leader of the Syrian rebel group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), once considered a terrorist organization.
Since the fall of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad’s regime, the country’s future has been the subject of international discussions. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken has previously announced that the US is in direct contact with HTS. HTS is still listed as a terrorist organization by the US.
Modern Diplomacy reported this in a report on Friday (December 20).
The rebel groups are led by Shara, who overthrew the regime of Bashar al-Assad less than two weeks ago. The leader of the influential group in the rebel alliance, Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), was previously known as Abu Muhammad al-Jolani.
In a statement, the State Department said U.S. diplomats will engage directly with the Syrian people, discussing their vision for the future of their country and how the United States can help them.
The U.S. delegation is led by Barbara Leaf, the top diplomat for Middle East affairs, Roger Carstens, the president’s envoy for detainees, and Daniel Rubinstein, a senior adviser on Syria. This is the first visit by a U.S. delegation to Damascus since the fall of the Assad regime.
The meeting discussed easing sanctions on Syria and the possible removal of HTS from the list of international terrorists, according to local Syrian news outlet Al-Watan Online.
HTS was once linked to the Syrian branch of al-Qaeda. But the group now says it has transformed itself and wants to establish a system that works with everyone. Its main goal is now to build institutions.
In a recent interview with the BBC, (HTS) chief Ahmad al-Shara ruled out the possibility of building Syria on the model of Afghanistan. The leader of the rebel group that led the overthrow of Assad said that Afghanistan is a sectarian society. There are different customs there. The way people think in Syria is completely different.
Supporting women’s education, he said, “Our university has been operating in Idlib for about eight years. As far as I know, more than 60 percent of university students are women.”
Asked whether Syria would allow alcohol, he said, “I have no right to comment on many issues. Because these are legal matters.”
Ahmad al-Shara said that his country has been tired of war for more than a decade. Currently, it is not a threat to its neighbors or the West.