U.S. diplomats meet Syrian opposition leader in Damascus
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Ahmad al-Sharaa, the leader of Syria's Islamist Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) group, addresses a crowd at the Umayyad Mosque in Damascus, Syria on Dec. 8, 2024. Photo: Aref Tammawi/AFP via Getty Images
Top State Department officials visited Damascus on Friday and met with the leader of the opposition group Hay'at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) Ahmad al-Sharaa, U.S. officials said.
Why it matters: It was the first public meeting between U.S. diplomats and al-Sharaa, who led the Syrian revolution that toppled the Assad regime.
- The U.S. government has designated al-Sharaa, who is also known as Abu Mohammed al-Jolani, a terrorist and has a $10 million bounty on him.
- A U.S. official said the meeting with al-Sharaa was "good and productive."
Driving the news: U.S. assistant secretary of state for near east affairs Barbara Leaf said al-Sharaa committed to not allowing terror groups to operate in Syria and threaten the U.S. or neighboring countries.
- Leaf said that as a result, the U.S. made clear it won't pursue the $10 million "reward for justice" on al-Sharaa.
- Leaf said she had a "good, thorough going" discussion with al-Sharaa "on a range of regional issues, as well as the domestic scene."
- "I heard him on his priorities, which are very much rooted in getting Syria on the road to economic recovery," she said.
- Leaf said lifting the bounty is a policy decision "in the interest of beginning a discussion with HTS. If we are having a discussion it is incoherent to have a bounty on his head."
Catch up quick: The U.S. delegation arrived in Damascus on Friday morning local time under heavy security, U.S. officials said.
- It was the first visit by State Department officials to Syria in more than a decade.
- The trip was part of a resumption of U.S. diplomatic engagement with the transitional government in Syria after the toppling of the Assad regime.
- Leaf said al-Sharaa "came across as pragmatic" and expressed moderate positions on women's and minority rights. She stressed it was a good first meeting "but we will judge by deeds and not only by words."
Zoom in: The U.S. delegation was led by Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs Barbara Leaf. She was accompanied by former U.S. envoy to Syria Daniel Rubinstein who will stay in Syria as the top U.S. diplomat on the ground.
- The State Department envoy for hostage affairs Roger Carstens also joined the delegation.
- One of the key issues the delegation discussed with al-Sharaa and other members of the transitional Syrian government was the search for missing U.S. journalist Austin Tice.
State of play: As the U.S. delegation was holding talks in Damascus, U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) announced it conducted an airstrike on Thursday targeting ISIS leader in Syria Abu Yusif.
- "Two ISIS operatives were killed, including Abu Yusif," CENTCOM said in a statement.
- CENTCOM said the strike was conducted "in an area formerly controlled by the Syrian regime and Russians."
What they're saying: CENTCOM commander Gen. Michael Erik Kurilla said the U.S. military will not allow ISIS to take advantage of the current situation in Syria and reconstitute.
- "ISIS has the intent to break out of detention the over 8,000 ISIS operatives currently being held in facilities in Syria. We will aggressively target these leaders and operatives, including those trying to conduct operations external to Syria," he said.
