Trump to Host Syrian President in Historic White House Visit

Cynical narrative

Syria's new leadership under Ahmed al-Sharaa is nothing more than jihadist extremism dressed to be palatable to Western standards. These are the same al-Qaeda affiliated militants who've simply rebranded themselves while maintaining their authoritarian practices and ideological rigidity. The West's delusional embrace of this transformation ignores the reality that raiders struggle to become administrators, and Syria will likely become more of an Islamic state than at any time since Ottoman rule.