Khalilzad: Others Can Learn from Ahmed al-Sharaa

The US had previously set the reward for information leading to the capture of Ahmed al-Sharaa, the leader of HTS.

Zalmay Khalilzad, the former US special envoy for Afghan peace, referred to the US removal of the bounty on Ahmed al-Sharaa, the leader of Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), and asked: “Are the Taliban paying attention?”

Without pointing to any specific country or individual, he said that others in similar circumstances can learn from Ahmed al-Sharaa about how to integrate into the mainstream international system.

“Others in similar circumstances can learn from Ahmed al-Sharaa how to join the mainstream international system,” Khalilzad wrote on X.

Earlier, Reuters reported that the US had decided to cancel the $10 million reward for the capture of Ahmed al-Sharaa.

Barbara Leaf, a senior US diplomat for Middle Eastern affairs, raised this issue after a US diplomatic delegation met with the leader of Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) in Damascus.

She said that this decision was made based on Ahmed al-Sharaa’s commitment that “terrorist groups cannot pose a threat.”

The US had previously set the reward for information leading to the capture of Ahmed al-Sharaa, the leader of HTS.

This was the first visit by senior US State Department officials to Syria in more than a decade.

The visit was part of the resumption of US diplomatic engagement with the transitional government in Syria following the fall of Bashar al-Assad.

Khalilzad: Others Can Learn from Ahmed al-Sharaa