"At Trump's Doorstep"- Islamic State Editorial on Meeting Between Ahmad al-Sharaa and Donald Trump

It is no exaggeration to say that Syrian president Ahmad al-Sharaa’s meeting with U.S. president Donald Trump in Saudi Arabia- a move largely facilitated by Saudi crown prince Muhammad bin Salman- would have been virtually unthinkable even just six months ago, given Ahmad’s leadership of Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS, which remains designated as a terrorist organisation by the U.S.). Moreover, the meeting led Trump to declare that he will seek to have sanctions on Syria lifted- a move widely hailed as facilitating an opportunity for economic recovery in Syria.

Unsurprisingly, the Islamic State has weighed in on the meeting to berate al-Sharaa (aka Abu Muhammad al-Jowlani) in its latest editorial in the weekly Arabic-language al-Naba’ newsletter. The editorial’s main points are as follows: