WASHINGTON: President Donald Trump hosted Syrian President Ahmad Al-Sharaa at the White House on Monday, welcoming the once-pariah state into a US-led global coalition to fight the Daesh group.
Al-Sharaa arrived at the White House around 11:30 a.m. for his Oval Office meeting, which was closed to the press. The Syrian president entered the building through West Executive Avenue, adjacent to the White House, rather than on the West Wing driveway normally used for foreign leaders’ arrivals. He left the White House about two hours later and greeted a throng of supporters gathered outside before getting into his motorcade.
“We’ll do everything we can to make Syria successful because that’s part of the Middle East,” Trump told reporters later Monday. The US president said of Al-Sharaa that “I have confidence that he’ll be able to do the job.” Trump said later on his social media site that he plans to meet and speak with the Syrian leader again.
Al-Sharaa, in an interview on Fox News, said he and Trump talked about investment opportunities in Syria in the future, “so that Syria is no longer looked at as a security threat. It is now looked at as a geopolitical ally. And it’s a place where the United States can have great investments, especially extracting gas.”
Syria formally confirmed that it would join the global coalition against the Daesh group during Al-Sharaa’s visit, becoming its 90th member, according to a senior US administration official who spoke on condition of anonymity because there hadn’t yet been a formal announcement. The US will also allow Syria to resume operations at its embassy in Washington so the two countries can better coordinate on counterterrorism, security and economic issues, the official said.
Syria’s foreign ministry, in a statement, described the meeting as “friendly and constructive” and said Trump “affirmed the readiness of the United States to provide the support that the Syrian leadership needs to ensure the success of the reconstruction and development process.”
The ministry said US Secretary of State Marco Rubio had then met with Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad Al-Shibani and Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan, who arrived in Washington on Monday, and that they agreed to proceed with implementing an agreement reached in March between Damascus and the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces to integrate the SDF into the new Syrian army. Implementation of the deal has repeatedly stalled amid tensions between the two sides. It was unclear what concrete steps were agreed upon in Monday’s meeting.
The statement said the “American side also affirmed its support for reaching a security agreement with Israel,” but it did not say how Syria had responded.
Al-Sharaa’s visit was the first to the White House by a Syrian head of state since the Middle Eastern country gained independence from France in 1946 and comes after the US lifted sanctions imposed on Syria during the decades the country was ruled by the Assad family. Al-Sharaa led the rebel forces that toppled Syrian President Bashar Assad last December and was named the country’s interim leader in January.
Trump and Al-Sharaa — who once had ties to Al-Qaeda and had a $10 million US bounty on his head — first met in May in Saudi Arabia. At the time, the US president described Al-Sharaa as a “young, attractive guy. Tough guy. Strong past, very strong past. Fighter.” It was the first official encounter between the US and Syria since 2000, when then-President Bill Clinton met with Hafez Assad, the father of Bashar Assad.
Before Al-Sharaa’s arrival in the US, the United Nations Security Council voted to lift sanctions on the Syrian president and other government officials in a move that the US ambassador to the UN, Mike Waltz, said was a strong sign that Syria is in a new era since the fall of Assad.
Al-Sharaa came to the meeting with his own priorities. He wants a permanent repeal of sanctions that punished Syria for widespread allegations of human rights abuses by Assad’s government and security forces. While the Caesar Act sanctions are currently waived by Trump, a permanent repeal would require Congress to act.
One option is a proposal from Sen. Jeanne Shaheen of New Hampshire, the top Democrat on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, that would end the sanctions without any conditions. The other was drafted by Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., a hawkish Trump ally who wants to set conditions for a sanctions repeal that would be reviewed every six months.
But advocates argue that any repeal with conditions would prevent companies from investing in Syria because they would fear potentially being sanctioned. Mouaz Moustafa, executive director of the Syrian Emergency Task Force, likened it to a “hanging shadow that paralyzes any initiatives for our country.”
The Treasury Department said Monday that the Caesar Act waiver was extended for another 180 days.
Trump hosts Syria’s Al-Sharaa for a first-of-its-kind meeting at the White House
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Trump hosts Syria’s Al-Sharaa for a first-of-its-kind meeting at the White House
- Syria’s presidency said Sharaa and Trump discussed the bilateral relationship and “ways to strengthen and develop it”
How one displaced family in Gaza is observing Ramadan’s first day under a fragile ceasefire deal
- Al Zamli said the war has deprived him and his family of many things
KHAN YOUNIS, Gaza Strip: Waleed Al Zamli longingly recalled the joys and traditions of the first day of Ramadan before the Israel-Hamas war had drastically altered his life: Lanterns for the children. Sweets. Special dishes.
“Before the war, we would greet it with happiness,” the father of 11 said, speaking from Muwasi, an area crowded with tents sheltering Palestinians who were forced by the Israeli military offensive to flee their homes.
Not anymore, he said.
It saddens and pains him that he’s unable to provide for his family, which now ekes out an existence in displacement. Al Zamli lost his job after the shop where he had worked was destroyed, he said.
So, for the first Ramadan “iftar,” the fast-breaking meal, his wife picked up meals Wednesday from a charity kitchen that the family has heavily depended on. She made soup to go with it.
“This year, there’s no happiness,” al Zamli said.
Hardships and losses dampen Ramadan’s spirit for many
Ramadan arrived in Gaza under a fragile ceasefire deal, but many Palestinians there say the month’s typically festive spirit is eluding them as they grapple with the hardships of their daily lives and the grief and losses of the war.
Some of these difficulties were on display at the charity kitchen where dozens crowded, many with their arms outstretched as they vied for a spot and held empty pots. They included children, women and elderly people.
During Ramadan, observant Muslims fast daily from dawn to sunset. It’s a time for increased worship, religious reflection and charity. In normal circumstances, the month often brings families and friends together to break their fast in joyous gatherings.
But circumstances in Gaza are far from normal. Israel’s military offensive has killed more than 72,000 Palestinians, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry, and caused widespread destruction and displaced most of the territory’s residents. Israel launched the offensive after Hamas-led militants killed some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and took another 251 hostage in their attack on Oct. 7, 2023.
For al Zamli, the biggest challenge this Ramadan is providing food for his family. He said he’s received limited aid. Foods, like meat and poultry, are more expensive than their prewar prices, he said, and with no income many items are beyond his reach.
“The children want to feel happy like other people’s children, to get dressed and to eat something clean and special,” he said.
The financial strain can be especially amplified during Ramadan, he said. Typically, many shoppers throng to markets to stock up on food staples and buy decor and other supplies. Food can play a central role as the daily fasting gives way to nourishing, and for some elaborate, iftar meals. Muslims also eat a predawn meal known as “suhoor” to nurture their bodies ahead of the fast.
As Gaza residents visited markets this week, some lamented how economic woes cast a pall on the month.
Ramadan decorations among the ruins
Still, amid the struggles, some in the Gaza Strip have worked to bring a taste of the month’s festivities — for example, hanging strands of Ramadan decorations among the ruins. At their displacement camp, al Zamli’s children played with empty soda cans fashioned to look like Ramadan lanterns.
The Oct. 10 US-brokered ceasefire deal attempted to halt more than two years of war between Israel and Hamas. While the heaviest fighting has subsided, the ceasefire has seen almost daily Israeli fire.
Israeli forces have carried out repeated airstrikes and frequently fire on Palestinians near military-held zones, killing more than 600 Palestinians, according to Gaza health officials. The ministry, which is part of the Hamas-led government, maintains detailed casualty records that are seen as generally reliable by UN agencies and independent experts. But it does not distinguish between civilians and militants.
Militants have carried out shooting attacks on Israeli troops, and Israel says its strikes are in response to that and other violations. Four Israeli soldiers have been killed.
Despite some much-needed respite under the shaky ceasefire deal, many daily struggles, big and small, persisted.
Al Zamli said the war has deprived him and his family of many things. A son-in-law, he said, was killed, shortly after he married his now-widowed daughter.
This Ramadan, he will pray “for the bloodshed to end … and to feel security, safety, and tranquility” and “to be able to provide good food and clothes for our children.”
