Overview
- Interim president Ahmad al-Chareh is scheduled to meet President Donald Trump at the White House on Monday in a landmark engagement.
- U.S. Syria envoy Tom Barrack says Chareh is expected to sign an agreement to join the American-led anti-jihadist coalition during the visit.
- The trip follows Chareh’s removal from the U.S. terrorism list and the UN Security Council’s decision to lift sanctions on him.
- Syria’s interior ministry reports 61 raids and 71 arrests targeting ISIS cells across several governorates, including Damascus, Aleppo and Raqqa.
- A diplomatic source cited by AFP says the United States plans to establish a military base near Damascus, as reconstruction financing talks proceed with needs estimated above $216 billion by the World Bank.