Syrian President al-Sharaa sits down with US general who arrested him

"David Petraeus led American forces during the invasion of Iraq and later became the director of the CIA. Taking the stage at a political forum in New York City for an interview, Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa and retired four-star United States General David Petraeus have acknowledged the peculiarity of the situation. Al-Sharaa, who overthrew former President Bashar al-Assad and ended his family's 50-year rule of Syria in a blazing military offensive late last year, has been president since January."

"After his release, al-Sharaa established the al-Nusra Front in Syria in 2012 to fight al-Assad. Four years later, it severed its ties with al-Qaeda. A year later, al-Nusra merged with other groups to form Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), led by al-Sharaa. HTS was designated a terrorist organisation by the US in 2018, citing past ties to al-Qaeda, a designation the US revoked in July as Washington softened its approach to post-Assad Syria."

"The US had placed a $10m bounty on al-Sharaa's head, lifting it only in late December. Al-Sharaa arrived in New York on Sunday to attend the United Nations General Assembly, the first Syrian head of state to do so in almost six decades. The president and his large delegation held meetings, including with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, and the leader addressed events on the sidelines of the General Assembly on Monday."

David Petraeus led American forces during the invasion of Iraq and later served as director of the CIA. Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa overthrew Bashar al-Assad in a military offensive late last year and has been president since January. Al-Sharaa was captured and imprisoned from 2006 to 2011 for fighting against the invasion. After his release, al-Sharaa established the al-Nusra Front in 2012 to fight al-Assad; it severed ties with al-Qaeda in 2016 and merged into Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) led by al-Sharaa in 2017. The US designated HTS a terrorist organisation in 2018, revoked the designation in July, and lifted a $10m bounty in late December. Al-Sharaa attended the UN General Assembly in New York, met US officials including Marco Rubio, and participated in the Concordia Annual Summit with Petraeus.

Read at www.aljazeera.com