Two Republican members of the US House of Representatives visited Syria over the weekend, marking the first congressional trip to the country since President Bashar Assad was removed from power in December 2024. Representative Cory Mills of Florida met Saturday with Syria’s new president, Ahmad al-Sharaa, in Damascus, according to state-run media. The visit reflects early steps in US engagement with the Islamist-led government that replaced Assad.
The meeting was also attended by Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shaibani and follows renewed Syrian appeals for the United States and European countries to lift sanctions imposed during the Assad era. Mills arrived Friday alongside Representative Marlin Stutzman of Indiana, who visited Sednaya Prison, a site infamous for torture and mass killings under Assad’s decadeslong rule.
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Al-Sharaa, a former commander in the jihadist group Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham, led the offensive that seized Damascus last December, forcing Assad into exile in Russia. Although President Donald Trump has not officially recognized the new Syrian government, his administration eased certain sanctions after Assad’s fall, allowing some humanitarian aid and limited energy transactions.
“I think lifting the sanctions will be very beneficial,” Stutzman said, adding that the changes in Syria “would be a huge economic boom.” He stressed that any such decision would rest with President Trump.
Despite meeting with US diplomats in December 2024, al-Sharaa remains a controversial figure. The Biden administration quietly withdrew a $10 million bounty for his capture shortly after Assad fled.