US rescinds $10 million reward for capture of new Syrian leader

(Patria) - The United States has rescinded its $10 million reward for the capture of Syrian de facto leader Ahmed al-Sharaa, following meetings between high-ranking diplomats and representatives of Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), the BBC reported.

Assistant Secretary of State Barbara Leaf said the conversation with Sharaa was "very productive," and that he was "pragmatic."

The American delegation arrived in the capital Damascus less than two weeks after HTS ousted the regime of Bashar al-Assad. Washington still designates HTS as a terrorist group.

A State Department spokesperson confirmed that diplomats discussed "principles of transition" supported by the US, regional events, and the need to fight IS.
The spokesperson also said officials are seeking further information on American citizens who disappeared under the Assad regime, including journalist Austin Tice, who was abducted in Damascus in 2012, and psychotherapist Majd Kamalmaz, who disappeared in 2017.

This visit marks the first official US diplomatic engagement in Damascus in over a decade and follows visits by delegations in recent days from the United Nations and other countries including the United Kingdom, France, and Germany.