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Al-Sharaa’s résumé reads like something out of a CIA nightmare. After the 2003 invasion of Iraq, he joined al-Qaeda’s ranks and fought directly against American forces. Captured in 2006 and imprisoned until 2011, he later founded the al-Nusra Front, an al-Qaeda affiliate that aimed to overthrow Bashar al-Assad. Years later, his coalition of militants, rebranded as Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, stormed through Syria in late 2024—toppling Assad’s regime in just eleven days.
By December, Assad had fled to Russia, and al-Sharaa seized control of a fractured, war-torn nation.
Trump’s High-Risk Gamble
Trump first met al-Sharaa in Saudi Arabia last May, not long after lifting U.S. sanctions on Syria. He stunned reporters with praise for the controversial new leader, saying, “Young, attractive guy. Tough guy. Strong past. Very strong past. Fighter… He’s got a real shot at holding it together. He’s a real leader.”
It’s a classic Trump move: a gamble that could either reshape the region—or blow up in spectacular fashion. Trump has urged the Syrian president to join the Abraham Accords and normalize ties with Israel, though al-Sharaa has remained cautious, pledging instead to maintain the 1974 disengagement agreement that ended the Yom Kippur War.
“Israel intended to enter Syria under the pretext of the Iranian presence, and its pretext has now ended,” al-Sharaa told The New York Times last year. Since seizing power, he’s branded Iran’s network of regional militias a “strategic threat to the entire region” and boasted that “the Iranian project in the region has been set back 40 years.”
The Saudis have backed him enthusiastically, seeing in al-Sharaa a chance to break Tehran’s influence and bring Syria into a new Sunni-led bloc supported by Washington and Riyadh.
Stability or Disaster?
Behind the scenes, U.S. envoy Tom Barrack confirmed that Washington is mediating talks between Syria and Israel to finalize a border security deal before year’s end. On paper, it’s a peace-through-strength success story. In reality, the risks are enormous.
Reports from human rights groups accuse al-Sharaa’s forces of massacres against minority groups, with thousands dead. His March “constitutional declaration” effectively gave him unchecked power for the next five years, consolidating control over every branch of government. Critics say warlords and former extremists now occupy top positions in Damascus.
Even within conservative circles, doubts are surfacing. The Wall Street Journal warned Trump’s move represents a troubling shift away from traditional Western values. Others warn that “betting on a former jihadist” could backfire if the new Syrian regime fails to reform.
Trump remains unapologetic. He insists he’s giving the war-ravaged nation “a chance for greatness” and told reporters, “Syria, show us something very special.”
Ron Paul Sounds the Alarm
Not everyone is celebrating. Former Texas Congressman Ron Paul, a long-time critic of U.S. foreign intervention, took to X with a blistering critique: “It is the insanity of US foreign policy in a nutshell that self-styled Syrian president Ahmed al-Sharaa is to be welcomed to the White House. Just before al-Sharaa’s (US-aided) rise to power in Syria last year he was head of the local al-Qaeda branch in Syria.”
He continued, “Before that al-Sharaa worked with al-Qaeda in Iraq and is responsible for the death of numerous US service members.”
Paul’s words cut to the core of a growing concern among America First conservatives: that Washington may once again be empowering the very forces it once fought—this time under the banner of diplomacy.
Trump’s bold play could cement a new Middle East order—or reopen old wounds. Either way, his meeting with Syria’s former jihadist-turned-president promises to be one of the most explosive foreign policy moments of his second term.
