Video: Trump boasts he ‘put there’ ex-ISIS commander as Syria’s president
US President Donald Trump
Abdullateef Fowewe
United States President Donald Trump has confirmed he played a direct role in installing Ahmed al-Sharaa, Syria’s new leader and a former ISIS commander turned HTS head, praising him as key to stabilising the war-torn nation.
“The president of Syria, who essentially I put there, is doing a great job. Syria is uniting nicely, and so far has been very good with the Kurds,” Trump said in recent remarks.
He elaborated, “But all I can say is that the President of Syria, who I essentially put there, is doing a phenomenal job. He’s a rough guy. He’s not a choir boy. A choir boy couldn’t do it. But Syria is coming together, really coming together well. And thus far, he’s been very good to the Kurds.”
Trump’s comments spotlight U.S. influence in al-Sharaa’s rise to power following Bashar al-Assad’s ouster in 2024.
Al-Sharaa, who rebranded from his jihadist past with Al-Qaeda and ISIS ties, assumed the presidency as HTS seized key territories in 2025.
The administration’s backing, including a November 2025 White House summit, unlocked $500 million in reconstruction aid, framing it as a bulwark against Iranian influence.
