Washington is scrapping a long-standing reward for the arrest of Syria’s new leader, a senior U.S. diplomat said Friday, following “positive messages” from a first meeting that included a promise to fight terrorism. Barbara Leaf, Washington’s top diplomat for the Middle East, made the comments after her meeting with Ahmed al-Sharaa in Damascus, the first formal mission to Syria’s capital by United States diplomats since the early days of Syria’s civil war. The lightning offensive that toppled president Bashar al-Assad on December 8 was led by the Islamist Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), which is rooted in Al-Qaeda’s Syria branch but has sought to moderate its image in recent years.

 

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

You May Also Like

Malaysia bans Israel-based shipping company from docking at ports

Malaysia banned vessels from the Israeli cargo shipping company Zim Integrated Shipping…

Loss of telecoms network will halt Gaza aid: UN

No aid convoys would cross into Gaza from Egypt today due to…

Pak-China trade to reach new heights: FM Bilawal

Foreign Minister (FM) Bilawal Bhutto Zardari has asserted that Pakistan’s bilateral trade…

Nearly 180,000 people displaced in Gaza by recent attacks: UN

A renewed Israeli military offensive has forcibly displaced almost 180,000 people in…