U.S. President Donald Trump vowed on Monday to do everything he can to make Syria successful after landmark talks with Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa, a former al Qaeda commander who until recently was sanctioned by Washington as a foreign terrorist, Reuters reported.

Sharaa’s visit capped a stunning year for the rebel-turned-ruler who toppled longtime autocratic leader Bashar al-Assad and has since travelled the world trying to depict himself as a moderate leader who wants to unify his war-ravaged nation and end its decades of international isolation.

One of Sharaa’s chief aims in Washington was to push for full removal of the toughest U.S. sanctions. While he met with Trump behind closed doors, the U.S. Treasury Department announced a 180-day extension of its suspension of enforcement of the so-called Caesar sanctions, but only the U.S. Congress can lift them entirely.

Trump met with Sharaa in the first-ever visit by a Syrian president to Washington, six months after their first meeting in Saudi Arabia, where the U.S. leader announced plans to lift sanctions, and just days after the U.S. said he was no longer a “Specially Designated Global Terrorist.”

In an unusually muted welcome, Sharaa, who once had a $10 million U.S. bounty on his head, arrived without the fanfare usually given to foreign dignitaries. He entered through a side door where reporters only got a glimpse instead of through the West Wing main door where cameras often capture Trump greeting VIPs.

Speaking to reporters, Trump praised Sharaa as a “strong leader” and voiced confidence in him. “We’ll do everything we can to make Syria successful,” he said.

But Trump also gave a nod to Sharaa’s controversial past. “We’ve all had rough pasts,” he said.

Promising “continued sanctions relief,” the Treasury Department announced a new order to replace its May 23 waiver on enforcement of the 2019 Caesar Act, which imposed sweeping sanctions over human rights abuses under Assad. The move essentially extended the waiver by another 180 days, Sharaa, 43, took power last year after his Islamist fighters launched a lightning offensive and overthrew longtime Syrian President Assad just days later on December 8, read the report.

Syria has since moved at a dizzying pace, away from Assad’s key allies Iran and Russia and toward Turkey, the Gulf – and Washington.

Security was also expected to be a top focus of Sharaa’s meeting with Trump, who in a major U.S. policy shift has sought to help Syria’s fragile transition.

The U.S. is brokering talks on a possible security pact between Syria and Israel, which remains wary of Sharaa’s former militant ties. Reuters reported last week that the U.S. is planning to establish a military presence at a Damascus airbase.

Syria recently signed a political cooperation declaration with the U.S.-led “Global Coalition to Defeat Islamic State,” the Syrian information minister said in a post on X on Monday.

Just hours before the landmark talks, word emerged of two separate Islamic State plots to assassinate Sharaa that had been foiled over the last few months, according to a senior Syrian security official and a senior Middle Eastern official.

Over the weekend, the Syrian interior ministry launched a nationwide campaign targeting Islamic State cells across the country, arresting more than 70 suspects, government media said.

Sharaa’s arrival at the White House was muted. Most heads of state are driven up the driveway festooned with their national flags. But on Monday there was none of that, Reuters reported.

Following the meeting, Trump sharply rebuked U.S. Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene, who said on X that she would “really like to see nonstop meetings at the WH on domestic policy not foreign policy and foreign country’s leaders.”

Saying the Georgia Republican had “lost her way,” he added: “I have to view the presidency as a worldwide situation … We could have a world on fire where wars come to our shores very easily.”

As Sharaa left the compound, he exited his motorcade just in front of the White House and briefly greeted a cheering crowd of supporters, some waving Syrian flags.

Sharaa was expected to strongly advocate for a repeal of the Caesar Act, which will help spur global investment in a country ravaged by 14 years of war and which the World Bank estimates will take more than $200 billion to rebuild.

Several influential members of Congress have called for the lifting of the 2019 Caesar sanctions, passed in response to human rights abuses under Assad. A few of Trump’s fellow Republicans want the sanctions to stay in place, but that could change if Trump applies pressure.

Syria’s social fabric has been more recently tested. New bouts of sectarian violence left more than 2,500 dead since Assad’s fall, deepening civil war wounds and putting into question the new rulers’ ability to govern for all Syrians.

Trump’s focus on Syria comes as his administration seeks to keep intact a U.S.-brokered Gaza ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas militants and push forward on his 20-point plan for an end to the two-year-old war there.

Sharaa’s own turnaround is no less impressive than his country’s. He joined al Qaeda in Iraq around the time of the 2003 U.S.-led invasion and spent years in U.S. prison there, before returning to Syria to join the insurgency against Assad.

In 2013, the U.S. designated Sharaa, then known as Abu Mohammad al-Golani, as a terrorist for his ties to al Qaeda. He broke ties with the group in 2016 and consolidated his influence in Syria’s northwest, read the report.

The U.S. removed the bounty on Sharaa in December, and just last week, the United Nations Security Council lifted terror-related sanctions designations on him and his Interior Minister Anas Khattab.

US President Donald Trump’s approval rating has fallen sharply — even among his own supporters — as the historic government shutdown enters its second month, according to new polling data.

A YouGov/Economist survey found that 84 percent of Trump supporters still approve of his performance, compared to 14 percent who disapprove. While that remains a strong figure, it represents a four-point drop since August, when he enjoyed a +74 approval rating among those who voted for him in 2024.

Across all voters, 39 percent said they approve of the way Trump is handling his job, while 57 percent disapprove. The poll was conducted between October 31 and November 3, as the shutdown became the longest in U.S. history — surpassing a 35-day closure that occurred during Trump’s first term.

The ongoing standoff has left millions of Americans struggling. The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) ran out of funds in early November, cutting off benefits for more than 42 million people. A lower court order had temporarily restored the aid, but the Supreme Court paused implementation last week.

The USDA initially said it was working to issue full benefits, but reversed that decision on Sunday, instructing states to halt those payments. Meanwhile, food banks across the country report overwhelming demand as federal workers continue to miss paychecks.

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) also announced flight reductions at 40 airports beginning Friday, citing staff shortages. Thousands of flights have since been canceled or delayed nationwide.

Trump’s decline in support comes just days after Democrats scored major victories in several state and local elections. A separate Emerson College poll, conducted November 3–4, found 49 percent disapproval of Trump’s performance, compared to 41 percent approval — a near reversal from the start of his presidency, when he held 49 percent approval and 41 percent disapproval.

According to Emerson Polling Director Spencer Kimball, Trump’s support among Republican voters has dropped from 91 percent to 79 percent since he took office.

Trump dismissed the negative polling results earlier this week, calling them “fake” in a post on Truth Social.

“So many Fake Polls are being shown by the Radical Left Media,” he wrote. “In the Fair Polls, and even the Reasonable Polls, I have the Best Numbers I have ever had — and why shouldn’t I?”

The president now faces mounting pressure to end the shutdown as economic disruption grows and public patience wanes.

Saudi Arabia said on Sunday that it had executed two citizens for joining a terrorist group that planned to carry out attacks on places of worship.

The two men also planned attacks against security facilities and personnel, Saudi state news agency SPA reported, citing a statement from the interior ministry.

The statement did not indicate when any of the attacks were planned to have taken place, Reuters reported.