Posted on 12/20/24
| News Source: Arutz-7
Barbara Leaf, the top US diplomat for the Middle East, on Friday informed Syria's new leader, Ahmed Al-Sharaa, that Washington would no longer pursue a reward for his arrest, AFP reported.
This announcement came during a meeting in Damascus, where Leaf praised "positive messages" from their discussions, including a commitment to combating terrorism.
Speaking to reporters after the meeting, which marked a rare formal visit by US officials to Damascus since the onset of Syria's devastating civil war, Leaf was quoted as having said, "Based on our discussion, I told him we would not be pursuing the Rewards for Justice reward offer that has been in effect for some years.”
The meeting follows Sharaa's rise to power after his Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) group ousted long-time leader Bashar Al-Assad. Leaf expressed cautious optimism about the early signs of the new government’s direction.
"We welcomed positive messages" from Sharaa, she said, while emphasizing that progress would be judged by actions rather than words.
"We will be looking for progress on these principles and actions, not just words," she noted.
Leaf also underscored the importance of an inclusive approach during Syria’s political transition.
"I also communicated the importance of inclusion and broad consultation during this time of transition," she said.
She reiterated the United States’ support for a Syrian-led political process aimed at building an inclusive and representative government.
"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," Leaf added.
HTS was once a part of Al-Nusra Front, which is Syria’s Al-Qaeda branch, and is labeled a terrorist organization by many Western governments.
HTS later broke off from Al-Nusra Front and prioritized combatting Al-Qaeda as well as the Islamic State (ISIS), of which al-Sharaa was critical, describing its self-proclaimed caliphate in parts of Syria and Iraq as "illegitimate".
Sharaa, who was previously known as Abu Mohammed al-Julani, stated this week that Syria is exhausted by the ongoing war and is no longer a threat to its neighbors or to the West.
In an interview with the BBC in Damascus, Sharaa called for the lifting of sanctions imposed on Syria, arguing that they were originally aimed at the old regime.
He also insisted that HTS is not a terrorist group, saying the rebels “did not target civilians or civilian areas” and adding that the group views itself as a victim of the Assad regime's crimes.