Syrian President Ahmed Sharaa has arrived in Washington for an official go to, simply two days after the US formally revoked his standing as a Specifically Designated International Terrorist.
The previous Islamist militant will meet US President Donald Trump on the White Home on Monday, eleven months after his insurgent alliance ousted Bashar al-Assad.
Hours earlier than his arrival within the US capital it was introduced that Syrian safety companies had detained dozens of suspected members of the so-called Islamic State group.
Joint efforts to sort out what stays of the group in Syria are anticipated to be excessive on the agenda throughout Sharaa’s talks with Trump.
Syrian authorities mentioned 71 suspected members of the group had been arrested, with weapons and explosives additionally seized.
Since taking energy, Sharaa has appeared to reestablish Syria’s presence on the world stage after many years of isolation beneath the Assad regime and 13 years of civil battle.
He travelled to the US in September to deal with the UN Normal Meeting, the place he mentioned Syria was “reclaiming its rightful place among the many nations of the world” and known as on the worldwide group to take away sanctions.
Earlier this week the UN Safety Council backed a US decision to raise measures, which coincided with Washington persevering with a months-long strategy of regularly easing sanctions on Syria and its new leaders.
On Friday, Sharaa and his inside minister, Anas Hasan Khattab, had been faraway from a US register of people suspected of supporting or funding extremist teams, a call the Treasury Division mentioned was “in recognition of the progress demonstrated by the Syrian management”.
Sharaa had been listed beneath the identify Muhammad al-Jawlani, the alias he used as chief of Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS). The group was affiliated with al-Qaeda till 2016, when Sharaa severed ties.
Previous to main HTS, Sharaa fought for al-Qaeda in Iraq and was for a time imprisoned by US forces. He was additionally topic to an American bounty of $10 million.
The US lifted its sanctions on HTS earlier this 12 months.
Trump beforehand met Sharaa in Could throughout a go to to Riyadh, the place he described him as a “robust man, very robust previous”.
Regardless of his background, Sharaa has drawn backing from governments that opposed the Assad regime by vowing to guide a average authorities which may win assist from Syria’s numerous ethnic teams and factions.
Earlier this 12 months, he vowed to root out parts of his safety forces which had been accused of executing members of Syria’s Alawite minority.
Lethal violence has additionally damaged out in latest months between Sunni Bedouin tribal fighters and Druze militias, elevating questions over whether or not the HTS-led authorities can restore stability to a rustic outlined by battle for greater than a decade.
