REPORT: US lifts terrorist label on Syria’s leader ahead of Trump visit

November 7, 2025

From The Hill: The State Department announced on Friday that the United Nations Security Council lifted the terrorist designation of two Syrian officials, including the country’s new president Ahmed al-Sharaa.

The adoption of a resolution “championed by the United States” to delist al-Sharaa and Interior Minister Anas Hasan Khattub “sent a strong political signal that further recognizes Syria’s transition to a new chapter,” State Department principal deputy spokesperson Tommy Pigott said in a statement.

“These actions are being taken in recognition of the progress demonstrated by the Syrian leadership after the departure of Bashar al-Assad and more than 50 years of repression under the Assad regime,” Pigott said.

As the new Syrian government moves forward, it will “fulfill its commitments on countering terrorism and narcotics, eliminating any remnants of chemical weapons and promoting regional security and stability as well as an inclusive, Syrian-led and Syrian-owned political process,” the statement concluded.

The report explains that “Al-Sharaa, under the name Abu Mohammed al-Golani, had ties with al-Qaeda, fought U.S. troops in Iraq and was even imprisoned by American forces after taking part in Syria’s civil war.”

On Monday, Al-Sharaa will become the first Syrian president to be welcomed into the White House. He is expected to sign an agreement to join the U.S.-led coalition against ISIS.

BACK STORY: Ahmed Hussein al-Sharaa, 42, now the president of Syria, is also known by his former gorilla leader name, Abu Mohammad al-Julani. The United States once had a $10 million bounty on al-Julani’s head, but the Biden administration removed that bounty in December 2024, after he toppled the regime of then-Syrian President Bashar al-Assad earlier that month.

Al-Julani, or Al-Sharaa, had been designated as a terrorist by the United States since 2013. He had previously fought against U.S. forces in Iraq and served time in the infamous Abu Ghraib prison.

In May, ABC News reported that the United States had “no choice but to engage with al-Sharaa” after he became president of Syria, explaining that “a stable Syria is vital to the entire Middle East region.”

Ahead of Syrian Pres Ahmed al-Sharaa’s debut at the White House on Monday, the State Department lifts his designation as a global terrorist pic.twitter.com/UoOfBwRnIp

— Laura Kelly (@HelloLauraKelly) November 7, 2025