The interim Syrian president, Ahmad al-Sharaa, is attending a bilateral meeting as part of COP30, the United Nations climate conference, in Belém, Brazil, on Nov. 6, 2025. (Credit: Mauro Pimentel/AFP)
Less than a year after seizing power in Syria, Ahmad al-Sharaa is received at the White House by Donald Trump — a first for a Syrian head of state since the country’s independence.Removed from the U.S. terrorist blacklist on Nov. 7, just a day after U.N. sanctions against him were lifted, Sharaa is intent on demonstrating his commitment to fighting terrorism.The Syrian leader and the U.S. president have announced Damascus’s integration into the international coalition against the Islamic State (IS) group. For the former jihadist, once known as Abu Mohammad al-Jolani, it is a way to erase a past now left behind with the group he once belonged to — one that continues to carry out near-daily attacks across the country.Damascus now intends to position itself at the forefront of the fight against IS. On Nov. 8, the Syrian Interior Ministry...
Less than a year after seizing power in Syria, Ahmad al-Sharaa is received at the White House by Donald Trump — a first for a Syrian head of state since the country’s independence.Removed from the U.S. terrorist blacklist on Nov. 7, just a day after U.N. sanctions against him were lifted, Sharaa is intent on demonstrating his commitment to fighting terrorism.The Syrian leader and the U.S. president have announced Damascus’s integration into the international coalition against the Islamic State (IS) group. For the former jihadist, once known as Abu Mohammad al-Jolani, it is a way to erase a past now left behind with the group he once belonged to — one that continues to carry out near-daily attacks across the country.Damascus now intends to position itself at the forefront of the fight against IS. On Nov. 8, the Syrian Interior...
