American diplomats arrived in Syria for their first visit since the overthrow of Assad

Top US diplomats from the Biden administration are in Damascus on Friday to meet with the new Syrian authorities led by Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), a State Department spokesman said, the first in-person and formal meeting between Washington and the new Syria. rulers.

The agents will also seek information on the whereabouts of missing American journalist Austin Tice.

Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs Barbara Leaf, former special envoy to Syria Daniel Rubinstein and the top Biden administration official in the hostage negotiations, Roger Carstens, are the first US diplomats to travel to Damascus since Syrian opposition forces toppled the repressive President Bashar al-U – Assad.

The visit comes as Western governments gradually open the door to HTS and its leader Ahmed al-Sharaa, and begin debating whether or not to remove the group’s terrorist designation. The US delegation’s trip follows contacts with France and Britain in recent days.

In their meetings, US officials will discuss with HTS representatives principles such as inclusiveness and respect for the rights of minorities that Washington wants included in Syria’s political reforms, the spokesman said.

The journalist was kidnapped in 2012

The team will also work to find new information about Tice, who was kidnapped while on a reporting trip to Syria in August 2012, and other American citizens who went missing during the Assad regime.

“They will be engaging directly with the Syrian people, including members of civil society, activists, members of various communities, and other Syrian voices about their vision for the future of their country and how the United States can help support them,” the Department said. said the spokesman.

“They also plan to meet with HTS representatives to discuss the terms of the transition approved by the United States and regional partners in Aqaba, Jordan,” the spokesman said.

The United States severed diplomatic ties with Syria and closed its embassy in Damascus in 2012.

In a tense moment in the Middle East, Syrian rebels seized control of Damascus on December 8, forcing Assad to flee after more than 13 years of civil war, ending his family’s decades-long rule.

The lightning strike has raised questions about whether the rebels will be able to ensure orderly movement

The US considers the rebel leader a terrorist

Forces under the command of Ahmed Al-Sharaa – better known as Abu Mohammed Al-Golani – replaced the Assad family regime with a three-month interim government that had been ruling the rebel-held province of Idlib in northwestern Syria.

Washington in 2013 designated Al-Sharaa as a terrorist, saying that al-Qaeda in Iraq had given him the task of overthrowing the Assad regime and establishing Islamic sharia law in Syria. It said the Nusra Front, the predecessor of HTS, carried out suicide attacks that killed civilians and displayed a violent sectarian ideology.

US President Joe Biden and his top aides described Assad’s overthrow as a historic opportunity for the Syrian people who have lived under his oppressive regime for decades, but they also warned that the country is facing a time of danger and uncertainty.

Washington is still worried that the terrorist group ISIS could seize this opportunity to rise and wants to avoid any conflict in the northeast of the country between rebel groups supported by Turkey and Kurdish forces allied with the US.