Syrian President Ahmed Sharaa has arrived in Washington for an official visit, just two days after the US formally revoked his status as a Specially Designated Global Terrorist.
The former Islamist militant will meet US President Donald Trump at the White House on Monday, 11 months after his rebel alliance ousted Bashar al-Assad.
Hours before his arrival in the US capital, it was announced that Syrian security services had detained dozens of suspected members of the so-called Islamic State group.
Joint efforts to tackle what remains of the group in Syria are expected to be high on the agenda during Sharaa's talks with Trump.
Syrian authorities reported the arrest of 71 suspected members of the group, along with the seizure of weapons and explosives.
Since taking power, Sharaa has aimed to reestablish Syria's presence on the world stage after decades of isolation under the Assad regime and 13 years of civil war.
He traveled to the US in September to address the UN General Assembly, asserting that Syria was reclaiming its rightful place among the nations of the world and urging the international community to lift sanctions.
Earlier this week, the UN Security Council backed a US resolution to lift measures coinciding with Washington's ongoing process of easing sanctions on Syria and its new leaders.
On Friday, both Sharaa and his interior minister, Anas Hasan Khattab, were removed from a US register of individuals suspected of supporting or funding extremist groups, a Treasury Department statement noted as recognition of the progress made by the Syrian leadership.
Sharaa had previously been listed under the name Muhammad al-Jawlani, an alias he used as the leader of Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), a group that was affiliated with al-Qaeda until 2016 when Sharaa severed ties.
Before leading HTS, Sharaa fought for al-Qaeda in Iraq and was imprisoned by US forces at one point, and was even subject to a $10 million bounty.
The US had lifted sanctions on HTS earlier this year.
President Trump met Sharaa in May during a visit to Riyadh, describing him as a tough guy with a very strong past. Despite his controversial history, Sharaa has garnered support from foreign governments by vowing to lead a moderate administration that seeks to unify Syria's diverse ethnic groups and factions.
Earlier this year, he committed to rooting out members of his security forces accused of executing individuals from Syria's Alawite minority. Recent months have seen deadly clashes between Sunni Bedouin tribal fighters and Druze militias, raising concerns about whether the HTS-led government can restore stability in a country deeply scarred by over a decade of conflict.
