BEIRUT (AP) — As an al-Qaida fighter in Iraq, he was detained by the American navy. Because the chief of a U.S.-designated terror group combating in Syria’s civil warfare, he had a $10 million bounty on his head.
Because the chief of a fast-changing Syria, Ahmad al-Sharaa shook arms Wednesday with U.S. President Donald Trump, who later described him as a “young, attractive guy” with a “very strong past.”
The handshake, at a gathering orchestrated by the leaders of Saudi Arabia and Turkey, captured al-Sharaa’s lengthy journey from hardened jihadi to the chief of a rustic that’s progressively shedding its pariah standing because it cements ties with America’s prime allies within the Center East.
Trump mentioned he would elevate crippling sanctions that have been imposed on the federal government of deposed Syrian President Bashar Assad, who was overthrown in December, expressing hope that al-Sharaa, who led the insurgency, can transfer Syria in a brand new path.
“He’s got a real shot at holding it together,” Trump mentioned. “He’s a real leader. He led a charge, and he’s pretty amazing.”
From al-Qaida extremist to statesman
Earlier than toppling Assad, al-Sharaa was recognized by the jihadi nickname he adopted, Abu Mohammed al-Golani. His ties to al-Qaida stretch again to 2003, when he joined the insurgency after the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq.
He helped al-Qaida kind an offshoot in Iraq that attacked each U.S. forces and the nation’s Shiite majority, typically utilizing automotive and truck bombs. He was detained by the U.S. and held for over 5 years with out being charged.
The group’s Iraqi chief, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, despatched al-Sharaa to his native Syria in 2011 after a preferred rebellion led to a brutal crackdown and ultimately a full-blown civil warfare. There, al-Sharaa established an al-Qaida department often known as the Nusra Entrance.
The 2 rebel leaders had a brutal falling out when al-Sharaa refused to hitch al-Baghdadi’s Islamic State group and remained loyal to al-Qaida’s central management. The Nusra Entrance later battled the Islamic State group.
In his first interview in 2014 on Qatari community Al Jazeera, he stored his face coated and mentioned Syria needs to be ruled by Islamic legislation, an alarming prospect for the nation’s Christian, Alawite and Druze minorities. Al-Sharaa additionally mentioned he couldn’t belief Gulf and different Arab leaders who he mentioned had bought themselves to Washington to remain in energy.
“They paid a tax, these Arab rulers, to the United States,” he mentioned.
However within the following years, he started rebranding himself and the armed group he led. In 2016, he introduced that he had severed ties with al-Qaida. He started showing in public unmasked and in navy garb, and adjusted his group’s title to Hayat Tahrir al-Sham — the Group for Liberating Syria — because it consolidated management over a swath of northwestern Syria.
His transformation — each political and sartorial — continued in 2021, when he gave an interview to an American community. This time he appeared in a shirt and trousers, along with his brief hair gelled again, and mentioned his group posed no risk to the West. He additionally referred to as for the lifting of sanctions on Syria.
A promise of change, however many obstacles
After main the lightning insurgency that toppled Assad, al-Sharaa promised a brand new Syria.
He vowed to rid the nation of Iranian affect and Iran-backed armed teams such because the Lebanese militia Hezbollah. He promised an inclusive, consultant authorities that will permit the nation’s many ethnic and non secular teams to stay in peace.
Washington lifted the fear designation weeks after he took energy, and he was embraced by Turkey and Saudi Arabia, whose de facto chief, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, hosted Wednesday’s assembly with Trump.
However the difficulties have been daunting.
Fourteen years of warfare left massive areas in ruins and, together with the sanctions, devastated the economic system. An estimated 90% of the inhabitants lives in poverty. Assad’s rule and the civil warfare additionally left deep fissures between the nation’s Sunni minority and the Alawite minority from which Assad hailed, and which benefited from his rule. These rifts have confirmed powerful to heal.
Al-Sharaa shaped a transitional authorities that gave some positions to minorities however was dominated by his interior circle.
A constitutional declaration later broadened al-Sharaa’s powers and mentioned Islamic legislation would stay on the coronary heart of laws for a five-year interim interval. Al-Sharaa argued that the measures have been wanted to stabilize the nation, whereas many critics seen it as an influence seize.
“It appears that many of the steps taken have been rushed and performative rather than offering genuine meaningful change in Syria,” mentioned Lara Nelson, coverage director on the Syrian analysis and coverage group Etana. “There are concerns about authoritarian consolidation.”
Sectarian clashes as civil warfare tensions linger
The most important take a look at for al-Sharaa got here in early March, when the nation witnessed its worst sectarian clashes since Assad’s downfall.
After safety forces crushed an armed rise up, apparently led by Assad loyalists, on the largely Alawite Mediterranean coast, fighters loyal to the brand new authorities carried out a wave of revenge killings.
Greater than 1,000 individuals have been killed over two days, largely Alawite civilians. Movies surfaced on-line exhibiting homes set ablaze and our bodies within the streets. Others confirmed Alawites being rounded up, mocked and overwhelmed.
Weeks later, clashes broke out between fighters loyal to the federal government and minority Druze residing within the Damascus suburbs. Smaller such incidents have occurred elsewhere within the nation.
In the meantime, Israel has invaded southern Syria and carried out a wave of airstrikes that it says are aimed toward destroying the nation’s navy capabilities and any armed teams that would pose a risk. A strike hit close to the presidential palace earlier this month.
Al-Sharaa has opened an investigation into the sectarian violence on the coast and has reached a settlement with the Druze. These steps have calmed issues down for now. However the internecine violence and Israel’s incursions have fed a way amongst many Syrians that there’s a safety vacuum.
Whilst he praised al-Sharaa, Trump acknowledged the large challenges he faces.
“I think they have to get themselves straightened up,” Trump mentioned. “They have a lot of work to do.”
