US President Donald Trump said on Tuesday he would order the lifting of sanctions on Syria at the behest of Saudi Arabia’s crown prince, in a huge boost for interim Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa as he seeks to stabilise a country shattered by war.
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Trump made the surprise announcement during a regional tour that began in Saudi Arabia.
The White House said Trump would say hello to Sharaa during his Saudi visit, indicating a meeting between the president and a former al-Qaeda commander who spent five years in a US prison in Iraq would take place on Wednesday.
Two sources from the Syrian presidency said Sharaa would travel to Riyadh to meet Trump.
The United States imposed tough sanctions on Syria during the rule of Bashar al-Assad, and had kept them in place since he was toppled from power in December after more than 13 years of war.
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Saudi Arabia has been a leading voice calling for the sanctions to be lifted.