Saudi Arabia hosted a major summit on Sunday that also included diplomats from the United States, Europe and the Middle East to discuss Syria's future. In the meeting, officials called for sanctions on the country to be lifted to give the new government a chance to recover from the civil war. war.
Syria is under the world's most onerous sanctions regime, aimed at isolating ousted dictator Bashar al-Assad in response to more than a decade of human rights atrocities against his people. President Bashar al-Assad used unjustified violence to suppress protests in 2011, sparking the Syrian civil war. The conflict, which at its height had 10 different militant actors, created a period of interregnum during which Islamic State established a “caliphate” centered on the northern city of Raqqa.
After the fall of the caliphate in 2017, the civil war went into a somewhat dormant state, but came to an abrupt end in November when the al-Qaeda offshoot Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) attacked Assad's forces in Aleppo, Syria's second largest city. did. HTS quickly seized control of Aleppo and advanced deep into Assad's stronghold until reaching the outskirts of Damascus in early December, forcing Assad to flee to Russia and leading to the collapse of Assad's regime.
HTS is now the de facto Syrian government, led by Ahmed al-Sharah, a former known jihadist. nom de guerre Abu Mohammed Al Jolani. Sharer ditched his military uniform and began donning Western-style suits, ensuring his terrorist organization would lead an “inclusive” government that respected the country's ethnic and religious minorities. However, Sharah claimed that the government would become Islamist, scolded “Those who fear Islamic rule are either implementing it incorrectly or do not understand it correctly.”
The campaign for Mr. Sharer's legitimacy includes allowing him to meet with representatives of the outgoing US President Joe Biden's administration in late December, resulting in the United States paying 1,000 yen on Mr. Sharer's head. A $10,000 reward was imposed. However, HTS remains a US-designated foreign terrorist organization and remains “Specially Designated Global Terrorist”.
Shara has promised to dismantle the HTS and integrate it into the revamped Syrian National Army. He also encouraged the world to lift sanctions on Syria, saying they were aimed at paralyzing the now-defunct Assad regime.
The Saudi government appears to agree with that view. In a statement at the Summit on Syria's Future on Sunday, Foreign Minister Faisal bin Farhan bin Abdullah Al Saud said: “We will coordinate efforts to support Syria and support the lifting of sanctions imposed on Syria. He called on the world to “work toward this goal.”
Prince Faisal of the Saudi Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) read out loud During the meeting, they “stressed that continued sanctions against the former Syrian regime will hinder the Syrian people's aspirations for development, reconstruction and stability.”
It added: “His Highness expressed Saudi Arabia's gratitude to the countries that announced the provision of humanitarian and development assistance to the Syrian people.”
Prince Faisal commended the Biden administration for waiving existing sanctions to allow humanitarian assistance while the HTS builds a functional government, adding: called for the lifting of unilateral and international sanctions and the urgent provision of all forms of humanitarian, economic and economic assistance.'' Capacity-building assistance to the Syrian state to create the right environment for the return of Syrian refugees. ”
The foreign minister also praised the HTS government for taking “positive steps” toward a “dialogue-based approach with the Syrian parties” and “devoting all its efforts to the fight against terrorism.”
Sunday's summit will include the United States, the European Union, Arab states, the United Nations, as well as Turkey, Jordan, Iraq, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Egypt and Bahrain. The Foreign Ministry said the meeting discussed “measures to support the brotherly Syrian people.” The Saudi Foreign Ministry added that it supports rebuilding Syria as a “united Arab state, independent and safe for all its peoples, with no room for terrorism and no violation of sovereignty or territorial integrity by any force.” . ”
HTS sent official Foreign Minister Asad al-Shaibani to meet with Saudi diplomats and address the forum. Shaibani had made This month, ahead of the talks, he traveled abroad to Saudi Arabia for the first time.
In a summary of his address to those gathered on social media, Shaibani said he used his time to assure the Syrian people that the brutality and destruction of the civil war would never happen again.
“We dedicate the great victory achieved by the Syrian people,” he was quoted as saying. “To those who died in public squares and whose voices for freedom were silenced by guns. To those who died under torture in Sednaya prison and elsewhere. And to those who died in the sea seeking asylum from the Assad regime. To the people who watched me drown.”
european union countries agreed They are scheduled to meet again at the end of January to discuss whether to maintain or lift sanctions on Syria. The Biden administration is in its final week in office, and it is unclear what actions the United States will take going forward. President-elect Donald Trump will take office on January 20th, but he has not yet clearly stated how he will approach the HTS administration diplomatically.
