Senior US diplomats visiting Damascus yesterday met Syria’s de-facto new ruler Ahmed Al Sharaa and held a “good” and “very productive” meeting with him about Syria’s political transition and decided to remove a bounty on his head.
In their first in-person meeting with the leaders of Hayat Tahrir Al Sham (HTS) since the former Al Qaeda affiliate overthrew Syria’s long-time President Bashar Al Assad two weeks ago, Al Sharaa “came across as pragmatic”, Barbara Leaf, top Middle East diplomat at the State Department, said.
“It was a good first meeting. We will judge by the deeds, not just by words,” Leaf, who was the head of the US delegation, said in a briefing and added that the US officials reiterated that Syria’s new government should be inclusive. It should also ensure that terrorist groups cannot pose a threat, she said.
“Ahmed Al Sharaa committed to this,” Leaf said. “So, based on our discussion, I told him we would not be pursuing rewards for justice,” she said, referring to a $10 million bounty that US had put on the HTS leader’s head.
The US, other Western powers and many Syrians were glad to see militias led by HTS topple Assad, but it is not clear whether the group will impose strict Islamic rule or show flexibility and move towards democracy.
Western governments are gradually opening channels to HTS and Al Sharaa, a former commander of an Al Qaeda franchise in Syria, and starting to debate whether to remove the group’s terrorist designation. The US delegation’s trip follows contacts with France and Britain in recent days.
The US has outlined a set of principles, such as inclusivity and respect for the rights of minorities, that Washington wants included in Syria’s political transition.
The US delegation also worked to uncover new information about US journalist Austin Tice, who was taken captive during a reporting trip to Syria in 2012, and other American citizens who went missing under Assad.
US Special Presidential Envoy for Hostage Affairs Roger Carstens, who was part of the delegation, said Washington would work with Syria’s interim authorities to find Tice.
Carstens, who has been in the region since Assad’s fall, said he has received a lot of information about Tice, but none of it had so far confirmed his fate one way or another.
The US cut diplomatic ties with Syria and shut its embassy in Damascus in 2012. Daniel Rubinstein, the newly appointed senior adviser who will lead US engagement in Syria, indicated there would be more trips by US officials. “We’re going to try to do them prudently and as frequently as practical.”
Syrian rebels seized control of Damascus on December 8, forcing Assad to flee after more than 13 years of civil war and ending his family’s decades-long rule.
The rebel sweep ended a war that killed hundreds of thousands, caused one of the biggest refugee crises of modern times and left cities bombed to rubble, countryside depopulated and the economy hollowed out by global sanctions.
The lightning offensive raised questions over whether the rebels will be able to ensure an orderly transition.
Forces under the command of Al Sharaa – better known as Abu Mohammed Al Golani – installed a three-month caretaker government that had been ruling a rebel enclave in Syria’s northwestern province of Idlib.
Washington designated Al Sharaa a terrorist in 2013, saying Al Qaeda in Iraq had tasked him with overthrowing Assad’s rule and establishing Sharia law in Syria. It said the Nusra Front, the predecessor of HTS, carried out suicide attacks that killed civilians and espoused a violent sectarian vision.
Al Sharaa said the terrorist designation was unfair and that he opposed the killing of innocent people.
Washington remains concerned that Islamic State could seize the moment to resurrect and also wants to avoid any clashes in the country’s northeast between Turkey-backed rebel factions and US-allied Kurdish militia.
Yesterday, thousands of Syrians held a celebration at Ummayyad Square in central Damascus, in an event called for by HTS. Speakers blared revolutionary songs, while people waved the newly adopted Syrian flag and chanted slogans in support of the government and against Assad.
The crowd was a mix of people from different walks of life and backgrounds: armed men in military fatigues, women – both with and without headscarves – and children.
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