NEW YORK (VINnews) — Less than a year after he was viewed as a wanted terrorist with a $10 million bounty on his head, Syrian president Ahmed Al-Sharaa has completed a remarkable turnaround in his fortunes, as he now controls most of Syria and is courted internationally by the world’s greatest leaders. Al-Sharaa has now arrived in the US for for a landmark visit during which he will meet with US President Donald Trump on Monday.
Join our WhatsApp groupSubscribe to our Daily Roundup Email
On Saturday, Al-Sharaa’s foreign minister and top diplomat Asaad al-Shaibani released a video to social media in which he and his president can be seen playing basketball with top US military commanders, a sign that both countries are moving forward with strengthening their ties.
This video shows Syrian Int President Ahmad al-Sharaa and FM Asaad al-Shaibani playing basketball with U.S. military officials, including CENTCOM’s Admiral Brad Cooper and anti-ISIS coalition head Brig. Gen. Kevin Lambert.pic.twitter.com/NGhlNqspUw
— Wladimir van Wilgenburg (@vvanwilgenburg) November 9, 2025
The video was shared by al-Shaibani on Instagram captioned: “Work hard, play harder. Running a few plays on the court with Admiral Brad Cooper and Brigadier General Kevin Lambert.”
Al-Shaibani didn’t disclose the location, but al-Shaibani shared the video as al-Sharaa arrived in the US. Al-Sharaa had previously met with Cooper in Damascus.
US envoy to Syria Tom Barrack said earlier this month that al-Sharaa would “hopefully” sign an agreement to join the international US-led alliance against the ISIS group. The Syrian interior ministry announced on early Sunday that it had recently carried out 61 raids and made 71 arrests in a “proactive campaign to neutralize the threat” of ISIS, according to the official SANA news agency.
Tells you a lot about the deteriorating ethical integrity of the “top US military commanders”…as well as the general American society normalizing antisemitism and marginalizing Israel.
The US is going the way of Europe. The US is committing suicide.
Terrorist in a suit
Lipstick on a pig
I don’t really care that Syrian leader Al-Sharaa is playing basketball with top US military commanders, but why are top US military commanders playing basketball with Syrian leader Al-Sharaa?
Cool