In December, as weepy Winken Antony Blinken was busy sucking up to the newest, cleanest Jihadi in a suit to roll into a Middle Eastern Third World s**thole, I was asking if the Biden administration had bothered to ‘meet the new boss’ in light of their effusive greetings to Abu Mohamed al-Jolani and his victorious, Turkish-backed Islamic marauders.
Naturally averse to believing any smooth-talking, gussied-up fanatic with an army of like-minded savages and a track record of unsocial behavior behind him, I wasn’t ready to jump on the ‘Oh, this guy is really different‘ bandwagon simply because Jolani knew where Saville Row was and could mouth, ‘diversity is our strength‘ (Yes, he really said that.)
By the beginning of March, it was pretty clear a jihadi leader now using his given name – Ahmed Al Sharaa – in a $4000 suit was still a jihadi at heart. Al-Sharaa’s boys were having themselves the rampaging adventures of a lifetime, systematically exterminating Druze and Alawite communities all over northern Syria with impunity. Oh – and trying to find the five or six Jews left in the country.
We haven’t heard much out of the area since, except for reports that detail American and Israeli strikes on targets in the area. Most associated with the ongoing cat and mouse game the Houthis had been playing and the assorted Iranian militias supporting them, who operate freely all through the southern portion of Iraq, Yemen, and Syria, as President Trump noted during his speech in Saudi Arabia today.
. @POTUS “Since January 20th, the U.S. Military has terminated 83 terrorist leaders operating across Iraq, Syria, and Somalia” pic.twitter.com/Ntq0Z3uKrT
— DOD Rapid Response (@DODResponse) May 13, 2025
Perhaps these few months have given Al-Sharaa some food for thought about which side of the bread he wanted buttered and by whom.
Obviously, Syria was a hole, and watching hell rain out of the skies from a newly reinvigorated American defense department posture had to have them recalculating what their odds were should they join the opposition.
Al-Sharaa’s bunch has been technically neutral so far.
So Trump was rambling along in his speech – I heard some of it in the car, talking about the transformation of the Saudi capital in just eight years – when he dropped a bombshell no one saw coming.
He was lifting all – ALL – of the sanctions on Syria that had been in place for so many years.
The Assads are gone, and Trump wants the Syrians, as he said, to have their ‘chance for greatness.’
A standing ovation in Saudi Arabia; for a message of peace. Wild how the so-called “warmonger” is the only one pulling off actual diplomacy while the experts collect think tank checks.
— The Undercurrent (@NotTheirScript) May 13, 2025
The crowd went wild.
The Syrians…
Celebrations across #Syria tonight, after @realDonaldTrump’s announcement that he intends to end #Syria sanctions.
There’s no understating what this means to ~25 million Syrians — 90% of whom live under the poverty line after 50+yrs of #Assad rule & 14yrs of war. pic.twitter.com/SLOG77RllK
— Charles Lister (@Charles_Lister) May 13, 2025
…have gone wild.
Changing the narrative in the middle east from being an interventionist super power to a legitimate broker of peace is a huge shift for the United States.
— Jinx Janx 171 (@ZaneCar95096859) May 13, 2025
Secretary of State Marco Rubio is going to meet with the Syrian Foreign Minister on Thursday in Turkey.
President Trump will greet Ahmed Al-Sharaa in Riyadh tomorrow.
…Axios reports that, asked by journalists earlier if he expects to meet with al-Sharaa during his visit to Saudi Arabia, Trump replied: “Yes, I think so.” A White House official later told Axios:
The president agreed to say hello to the Syrian president while in Saudi Arabia tomorrow.
But this makes it no less significant. Per Politico:
It’s nonetheless a striking encounter with a man who’s still on the US terrorist list — and the first meeting between US and Syrian leaders since 2000. The US sanctions have weighed heavily on the Syrian economy, threatening al-Sharaa’s ability to rebuild the country since the rebel leader ousted the Assad regime five months ago.
Trump said during his speech at the US-Saudi investment forum that he had decided to lift sanctions on Syria following conversations with Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdoğan as well as with Saudi crown prince Mohammed bin Salman. “Oh, what I do for the crown prince,” Trump said in reference to MBS before making the announcement.
The “brutal and crippling” sanctions had served their purpose at the time but were no longer needed, said Trump, adding:
Now it is their time to shine. We are taking them all off. Good luck Syria. Show us something very special.
This is a gobsmacking move.
An ‘Only Trump could do this‘ move.
As always, ever so interesting how it all came together, with Al-Sharaa seeking out the US, not vice versa. And the Syrian representative spun a dream of a Trump Tower in Damascus one day.
…Speaking at an investment forum on Tuesday, Trump said that he planned to lift sanctions on Syria after holding talks with Saudi Arabia’s Mohammed bin Salman and Turkey’s Recep Tayyip Erdoğan “to give them a chance at greatness”.
…Sharaa, who is keen to normalise relations with the US, has reportedly offered Trump a number of sweeteners including the Trump tower in Damascus, a demilitarised zone by the Golan Heights that would strengthen Israel’s claim to the territory it has occupied since 1967, diplomatic recognition of Israel, and a profit-sharing deal on resources similar to the Ukraine minerals deal.
The idea to offer Trump a piece of real estate with his name on it in the heart of Damascus was thought up by a US Republican senator, who passed on the idea to Sharaa’s team.
I can’t imagine who the senator was, but I’ll bet his last name might have something to do with a cracker often used for sweet pie crusts…just sayin’. What a hoot.
Trump will talk to anyone who sincerely wants to talk to him. It’s like his magic power.
If it works – and it’s all on the Syrians – it’s going to plug several gaping holes using available assets.
I’m no Jolani fan, but I can see the 4d chess
-Syria has been an Iranian/Russian proxy for decades; this reverses that
-Cuts off resupply for Hezbollah
-I’m guessing Syria and KSA join Abraham AccordsThis contains Iran and further stabilizes the ME
— Shaun Maguire (@shaunmmaguire) May 13, 2025
This also helps keep Turkey on the spot because, should Al-Sharaa start to see the fruits of cooperation with the US pay off and Syria begins to rise from the dead, he becomes a hero, and there’s nothing more these egotists love than being loved. He won’t let Erdogan interfere with that, whatever he owes him.
The other is the pressure from Saudi Arabia on Syria now. They facilitated this come to Trump moment. The crown prince would take it ill if the jihadi reappeared after making a public spectacle of the Saudis’ belief that he was worth cultivating and his country worth saving.
The Saudis do not take embarrassment lightly.
So, here we are. There should be pictures tomorrow from the brief little social meeting between Trump and Al-Sharaa. Probably news from Marco’s meeting on Thursday in Turkey.
For the record, the CBS Evening News just s**t all over Trump and his trip so far – spent a good portion of it focused on the 2018 Khashoggi murder – and never once mentioned this amazing Syria development. They haven’t loaded the episode yet.
Body language is going to be neat to watch.
I swear, I still will never trust one of these guys, but what a way to shake things up if it comes off.
The times they are a changing pic.twitter.com/kbJkH4zY1B
— Sharyl Attkisson 🕵️♂️💼🥋 (@SharylAttkisson) May 13, 2025
Honest to God – ONLY Trump could go to Syria.
