On Monday, Ahmed al-Sharaa became Syria’s first head of state to visit the White House, where he was hosted by President Donald Trump, marking another milestone in the U.S.-backed ongoing transformation of the former al-Qaeda commander into a formidable ally in the Middle East.  

During the visit, the two leaders discussed reconstruction of Syria, economic development, normalisation of the relationship between Syria and Israel, and ongoing cooperation in the fight against ISIS. The White House also suspended sanctions against Damascus for a further six months.

Mr al-Sharaa’s history with America began in 2003, when he pledged allegiance to al-Qaeda shortly after Washington’s invasion of Iraq and fought against U.S. forces for more than three years. He was subsequently captured by American troops in 2006 and was imprisoned for five years before his release in 2011.

Upon his release, the 43-year-old, in 2012, created al-Nusra Front to topple the government of former dictator and America’s archenemy, Bashar al-Assad. However, the U.S. immediately designated the group as a Foreign Terrorist Organisation.

As the leader of al-Nusra Front, Mr al-Sharaa played a significant role in launching numerous attacks against U.S.-backed Syrian forces and fought against coalition-aligned factions, prompting the U.S. State Department to place a $10 million bounty on his head for any information leading to his arrest.

In the early 2020s, the Saudi Arabian-born Mr al-Sharaa reportedly grew tired of fighting. He merged al-Nusra Front with other groups to form Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham, which he became its emir, claiming to distance himself from al-Qaeda and focus on governing northwestern Syria.

HTS established a technocratic administration known as the Syrian Salvation Government in northwestern Syria, controlling the population of over four million people.

SSG was in charge of collecting taxes, issuing identification cards, and providing public services in the area, while the group planned attacks against Mr al-Assad’s forces from there.

The relationship between Mr al-Sharaa significantly shifted positively in November 2024 when HTS, alongside U.S. and other western-backed groups, including the Free Syria Army, fought against Iranian and Russian-backed Mr al-Assad’s forces in an 11-day conflict, which led to the collapse of the regime.

Mr al-Assad fled Syria to Russia as soon as his regime fell, leading Mr al-Sharaa to assume control of the country as the Syrian de facto leader from December 2024 until his appointment as president in January 2025.

The U.S. and other Western countries saw the fall of the regime as an opportunity to regain their influence in Syria and intensified coalition fight against ISIS, considering HTS rivalry with the terrorist group, which is deemed a bigger threat, the efforts to reform Mr al-Sharaa’s public image and partner with him began.

Since his confirmation as president, most Western countries have started to remove their sanctions on Syria.

In September, Mr al-Sharaa became the first Syrian leader in 58 years to attend the United Nations’ annual general assembly, where he addressed and met with other world leaders.

Speaking after the meeting on Monday, Mr Trump heaped praise on Mr al-Sharaa, stating, “He comes from a very tough place, and he’s a tough guy. I like him.”

He added, “We’ll do everything we can to make Syria successful, because that’s part of the Middle East. We have peace now in the Middle East – the first time that anyone can remember that ever happening.”

Mr al-Sharaa later told Fox News that his association with al-Qaeda was a matter of the past and was not discussed during his meeting with Mr Trump, adding that Syria is now a strategic partner of the U.S. in the Middle East and no longer a threat.