Egyptian journalist Abderrahman Youssef, working for the Reuters agency, reported that he asked Matthew Miller, official spokesperson for the American State Department, concerning the validity of the $ 10 million reward offered for the capture of Abu Mohammed Al-Joulani, head of the rebel coalition now in power in Syria.
The Egyptian journalist said Matthew Miller replied that the award was still in force, without providing more details.
In a tweet, the Egyptian journalist wrote: “One of my questions today to Matthew Miller, spokesperson for the State Department, focused on the validity of the $ 10 million award concerning Al-Joulani. He replied yes, she was still valid. Then, Matt Lee, correspondent of the Associated Press, asked if someone affiliated to the government could benefit from this award. The answer was: “No, that’s right. “”.
It should be noted that Al-Joulani, known in the media under the name of Ahmed al-Charaa, is the head of the Syrian armed opposition, who has taken control of the Syrian capital, Damascus, since December 8.
Al-Joulani is also considered to be the leader of the Jabhat Al-Nosra group, classified on the lists of terrorist organizations, which was then renamed “Hayat Tahrir Al Sham”, which is also considered a terrorist organization by Western countries.
Until now, Western countries have not withdrawn al-Joulani and Hayat Tahrir Al Sham from the lists of terrorism, conditioning such an approach to the establishment of a new power in Damascus, which would justify their withdrawal from these lists.
The United States has recently interacted directly with Hayat Tahrir Al Sham when it has obtained the release of the American journalist Travis Timmerman, previously detained in Assad’s prisons.
In addition, a French delegation visited Damascus yesterday to assess the situation in the Syrian capital. Al-Joulani also invited the United Kingdom and other countries to restore their diplomatic representations in Syria.
