Everyone wants to meet Syria’s new rulers
But a flurry of diplomatic meetings in Damascus points to the obstacles ahead
IT WAS a very social week for a man with a $10m bounty on his head. Foreign diplomats rushed to Damascus to talk with Ahmad al-Sharaa (pictured), the rebel commander who led the offensive that ousted Bashar al-Assad. His Islamist faction, Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), is blacklisted as a terrorist group by America, Britain, the European Union and the United Nations. That did not prevent him from meeting Geir Pedersen, the UN special envoy for Syria, or delegations from Britain, France, Qatar, Turkey and other countries.
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This article appeared in the Middle East & Africa section of the print edition under the headline “Meet the boss”
From the December 21st 2024 edition
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