The US decided to scrap a $10 million reward for the capture of Syria’s new interim leader Ahmed Al-Sharaa and named a new Syria coordinator.
The announcement followed a meeting in Damascus between U.S. diplomat for the Middle East, Barbara Leaf and the leader of Hayat al Tahrir al-Sham (HTS).
During a press conference, she welcomed ‘positive messages’ from their talks, including a promise to fight terrorism. Leaf told Sharaa of the ‘critical need to ensure terrorist groups cannot pose a threat inside of Syria or externally, including to the US and our partners in the region. Ahmed al-Sharaa committed to this’.
‘Based on our discussion, I told him we would not be pursuing the Rewards for Justice reward offer,’ she said.
The FBI in 2017 put up a $10 million reward for information leading to the arrest of Al-Sharaa, who was previously known as Abu Mohammed al-Jolani, over his involvement with Al-Qaeda.
Leaf, who lead the first formal visit by US diplomats to Damascus since the early days of Syria’s civil war, described Al-Sharaa as ‘pragmatic’ and that their meeting was ‘quite good, very productive, detailed’.
‘We welcomed positive messages’ from Al-Sharaa since his Islamist HTS rebels toppled Bashar al-Assad, she said. ‘We will be looking for progress on these principles and actions, not just words.’
‘We will be looking for progress on these principles and actions, not just words.’Leaf said
HTS remains on Washington’s terror blacklist. Leaf did not comment on the designation but said that after her discussions with Al-Sharaa, ‘it’s a little incoherent, then, to have a bounty on the guy’s head’.
The HTS leader has spoken of inclusion and disbanding rebel factions. Leaf said she reinforced ‘the importance of inclusion and broad consultation during this time of transition’.
‘We fully support a Syrian-led and Syrian-owned political process that results in an inclusive and representative government which respects the rights of all Syrians, including women, and Syria’s diverse ethnic and religious communities.’ She said
‘Iran will have no role whatsoever — and it shouldn’t, frankly.’
Toppled Assad was the main Arab ally of Iran’s Shiite cleric-run state, which has faced a slew of setbacks at the hands of Israel. Asked about Iran’s future role in Syria, Leaf said: ‘If I’m to judge by today, Iran will have no role whatsoever — and it shouldn’t, frankly.’
Iran, with its deployment of Revolutionary Guards and Lebanese militia Hezbollah, ‘really preyed upon and really viciously brutalized the Syrian people,’ she said.
Following the meeting, a U.S. State Department official, speaking on condition of anonymity, told The New Arab’s sister publication Al-Araby Al-Jadeed that ambassador Daniel Rubinstein , one of the State Department’s leading “Arabists,”has been appointed the new Syria coordinator.
The official said: ‘He will now serve as Senior Advisor at the Bureau of Near Eastern Affairs, leading the department’s diplomatic engagement on Syria.
‘He will work closely with the Syrian people and key stakeholders, while coordinating efforts with allies and partners to advance the Aqaba principles.’
New Arab