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The US has said it will remove $10 million from Abu Mohammad al-Jolani, the leader of Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, the Islamist group that led the overthrow of Syria's Assad government, in a sign that Washington is willing to join forces. leadership.
In exchange, Jolani, who now goes by his birth name, Ahmed al-Sharaa, agreed that terrorist groups cannot be allowed to “pose a threat inside Syria or outside, including the US and our partners in the region”, Barbara. Leaf, the State Department's top Middle East official, said on Friday.
Leaf met Jolani in Damascus earlier in the day and told reporters that raising the bounty would allow US officials to meet with the rebel leader without handing him over to US law.
Leaf said his meeting with Jolani was “very good, very productive, very detailed.”
“He came across as pragmatic,” she said, adding that he made “moderate” statements about equal protection for women and minorities. “We will judge by actions, not just words,” he added.
HTS is designated as a terrorist organization by the US, EU, UN and others, which means that Washington cannot provide material support for the group, but it can communicate with its members. Jolani said that Assad's departure means that sanctions should be lifted from the government.
US officials have said they will consider lifting sanctions and the terrorist designation, which has been in place since 2018, if HTS demonstrates its commitment to “inclusive” governance and maintaining stability.
They say Jolani and the transitional government will eventually face internal pressure to take the necessary steps to remove the sanctions regime.
“I think there's going to be a certain degree of internal pressure on both the interim authorities and then any transitional government that comes a few months from now, to go in a direction that can, in fact, meet the kind of demands that we're going to have in terms of sanctions,” Leaf said.
He added that Jolani emphasized that he wants to start working on the Syrian economy.
The US delegation in Damascus also includes Roger Carstens, the US special envoy for hostages, and senior diplomat Daniel Rubenstein, who will lead negotiations with Syria.
Diplomats held meetings and conducted site visits in the capital as part of efforts to find Austin Tice, the American journalist who disappeared in Damascus in 2012.
Carstens said it was not clear if Tice was still alive. “The information we have right now doesn't prove one way or the other,” he said.
U.S. officials said they plan to contact transition officials and other Syrians on additional trips to Syria as conditions permit.