Syria’s interim President lands in Saudi Arabia on first trip abroad, likely a signal to Iran

Syria's interim President visits Saudi Arabia, signaling a shift from Iran as main ally, aiming to lift sanctions.

Syria's interim President made his first trip abroad on Sunday (February 2, 2025), travelling to Saudi Arabia in a move likely trying to signal Damascus' shift away from Iran as its main regional ally.

Ahmad al-Sharaa, who was once aligned with al-Qaeda, landed in Riyadh alongside his government's foreign minister, Asaad al-Shaibani. The two men travelled on a Saudi jet, with a Saudi flag visible on the table behind them.

Saudi state television trumpeted the fact that the first trip by al-Sharaa, first known internationally by the nom de guerre Abu Mohammed al-Golani, made Riyadh his first destination.

Syria's new three-star, tricolour flag flew next to Saudi Arabia's own at the airport as al-Sharaa in a suit and tie walked off the plane. He was scheduled to meet with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, the kingdom's de facto ruler, on the trip.

Saudi Arabia had been among the Arab nations that poured money into insurgent groups that tried to topple former President Bashar Assad after Syria's 2011 Arab Spring protests turned into a bloody crackdown. However, its groups found themselves beaten back as Assad, supported by Iran and Russia, fought the war into a stalemate in Syria.

That changed with the December lightning offensive led by al-Sharaa's Hayat Tahrir al-Sham. The group was once affiliated with al-Qaida but has since denounced its former ties.

Al-Sharaa and HTS have carefully managed their public image in the time since, with the interim president favouring an olive-coloured military look similar to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, appointing women to roles and trying to maintain ties to Syria's Christian and Shiite Alawite populations.