US to remove $10mn bounty for Syria’s Islamist rebel leader

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The United States has announced it will withdraw a $10 million reward for Abu Mohammad al-Jolani, the leader of Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, the Islamist group that led the toppling of the Assad regime in Syria, in a sign that Washington is ready to cooperate with the new regime.

Instead, Jolani, who now goes by his birth name Ahmed al-Sharaa, agreed that terrorist groups cannot be allowed to “pose a threat inside or outside Syria, including to the United States and our partners in the region,” Barbara Leaf, a State Department insider A high-ranking official of the East said on Friday.

Leaf met Jolani earlier in Damascus and told reporters that removing the bounty would allow US officials to communicate with the rebel leader without turning him over to US law enforcement.

Leaf said his meeting with Jolani was “pretty good, very productive, detailed.”

“He was pragmatic,” he said, adding that he had made “moderate” statements about equal protection for women and minorities. “We will judge by actions, not just words,” he added.

HTS is designated a terrorist organization by the US, EU, UN and others, meaning Washington cannot offer the group material support but can communicate with its members.Jolani said Assad’s departure means that sanctions against the state should be lifted.

US officials have said they would consider lifting both the sanctions and the terrorist designation, which has been in effect since 2018, if HTS proves its commitment to an “inclusive” rule and maintaining stability.

They say Jolani and eventually the transitional government will face domestic pressure to take the necessary steps to lift the sanctions regime.

“I think there will be a lot of internal pressure on both the interim authorities and the transitional government after a few months to move in the direction that, in fact, will be consistent with our demands. would have in terms of sanctions,” Leaf said.

He added that Jolani emphasized that he wants to start working on the restoration of the Syrian economy.

The US delegation in Damascus also included US Special Envoy for Hostage Affairs Roger Carstens and Senior Diplomat Daniel Rubenstein, who will lead relations with Syria.

Diplomats have held meetings and visited the capital as part of efforts to find American journalist Austin Tice, who disappeared in Damascus in 2012.

Carstens said it was unclear whether Tice was still alive. “The information we have right now doesn’t confirm it one way or the other,” he said.

U.S. officials say they plan to engage with transition officials and other Syrians for future trips to Syria as conditions permit.