Syria's new leader al-Sharaa meets Saudi crown prince on first trip abroad

Syria's interim president Ahmed al-Sharaa (right) and his foreign minister pictured on board a flight heading to Saudi Arabia.

Syria's interim president Ahmed al-Sharaa met Saudi Arabian Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in Riyadh on his first international trip Sunday, visiting Saudi Arabia in what appears to be an effort to signal Damascus' pivot away from Iran as its primary regional ally.

Syria's interim president Ahmed al-Sharaa arrived in Saudi Arabia on Sunday for his first international visit since the toppling of Bashar al-Assad, state media reported.

Live TV footage showed Sharaa shaking hands with the crown prince in the Saudi capital before sitting down for talks.

The Saudi crown prince is the second Gulf leader to meet Sharaa since the latter was declared president for a transitional phase last week.

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Qatar's Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani met Sharaa in Damascus on Thursday, becoming the first head of state to visit the Syrian capital since Bashar al-Assad was ousted in December.

Sharaa, an Islamist who was once an affiliate of al-Qaeda, has been trying to gain support from Arab and Western leaders since Assad was toppled.

Sharaa was accompanied on his visit by Syria's foreign minister, Asaad Hassan al-Shibani.

The Syrian presidency had earlier posted a picture on X of Sharaa and Shaibani aboard what appeared to be a private jet on their way to Saudi Arabia, calling it a "first official visit".


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