Originally published via Armageddon Prose:
On the off-chance that anyone still bitterly clings to the myth that the function of U.S. foreign policy is to represent American national security interests (and/or spread Democracy
or human rights or whatever), may the the following curious exchange between former CIA boss/retired general David Petraeus and allegedly reformed Sunni jihadist terrorist Ahmed al-Sharaa — now ruling Syria following the downfall of the Assad regime — put that quaint fiction to bed once and for all.
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By way of context, before we get into the pornographic exchange, Ahmed al-Sharaa, current Syrian autocrat, is more popularly known by his nom de guerre, Abu Mohammad al-Julani — a name he made for himself over decades of raping and pillaging Iraq and Syria in the name of Sunni fundamentalism.
Just a few years ago, the U.S. State Department had a $10 million bounty on al-Sharaa’s head.
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Al-Sharaa has worn many hats over the years — al-Qaeda insurgent post-Iraq invasion, protégé to infamous terrorist Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, al-Nusra founder, to name a few — but none more ill-fitting than his newest role of “statesman,” a guise which the United States government is apparently desperate to help him pull off.
Via Ynet News, December 2024 (emphasis added):
“The current military commander of Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham, Abu Mohammad al-Julani, previously served as the Emir of Jabhat al-Nusra from 2012 to 2016. His real identity remains a subject of speculation, with some sources identifying him as Ahmed Hussein al-Sharaa and others as Osama al-Wahdi. Reports about his life are contradictory, adding to his enigmatic reputation…
According to Arab media, al-Julani was born in either 1981 or 1982 in Deir ez-Zor, Syria, and grew up in the Idlib region. He initially studied medicine but dropped out and joined al-Qaida in Iraq in 2003 following President Bush’s invasion, where he became close to the infamous Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, the group’s leader. After the latter’s assassination in 2006, al-Julani relocated to Lebanon but later returned to Iraq, where he was detained by U.S. forces and released in 2008.
Following his release, al-Julani resumed his activities with the Islamic State of Iraq under Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi. In August 2011, amid protests against Assad, al-Julani was sent by al-Qaeda to Syria to establish a branch of the organization. In 2012, he founded Jabhat al-Nusra, calling on Syrians to wage jihad against the Assad regime.”
Here’s what Ahmed Hussein al-Sharaa looked like when he had his jihadi costume on up until just a few months ago.
And this is what he looks like now after his makeover, having his taint licked passionately by Deep State puppet David Petraeus:
Related: Columbia U Video Promotes Hillary Clinton’s New Foreign Policy Course
Some of the sicker bits of sycophancy from Petraeus:
· Announces “it is obviously my privilege to interview His Excellency, Ahmed al-Sharaa”
· Opens the interview with the Muslim greeting “As-salamu alaykum”
· Asks about how al-Sharaa’s been sleeping lately
· Swoons like a fan girl: “Your vision is powerful and clear. Your demeanor is very impressive as well. We wish you strength and wisdom in the difficult work ahead. We obviously hope for your success, inshallah, because at the end of the day, your success is our success.”
I encourage you to watch the full interview linked above, a truly surreal spectacle.
Lest we suffer the mistaken notion that al-Sharaa has actually reformed himself into some champion of liberal secular democracy, he spent the summer massacring Christians, Druze, and Shia minorities across Syria.
Via Catholic News Agency, July 7, 2025 (emphasis added):
“Allies of the new Syrian government and other non-state actors have continued violence and discrimination against Christians, Druze, and Shia Muslims, according to a new report from the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF).
Syrian rebels, many of whom were affiliated with Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), toppled former Syrian President Bashar al-Assad’s regime in late 2024. The report notes that HTS members, many of whom were foreign fighters, engaged in mass killings and other forms of persecution against religious minorities during the overthrow of Assad and have continued violations after taking control of the government.
Syria’s new president, Ahmed al-Sharaa, commanded HTS during the revolution. He was also previously a member of al-Qaeda. In addition to HTS, the report also noted that members of Turkish-backed political opposition and militias (TSOs) and other organizations that engaged in mass killings and religious liberty violations have been welcomed into high-ranking positions in the new Syrian government…
The most egregious violence after the new government took control was waged against Alawite Muslims — a Shia sect to which Assad and many of his allies belonged — and against Druze — an Abrahamic religion that is separate from Islam, Christianity, and Judaism.
According to the report, unidentified rebels burned the homes of civilian Alawites in Latakia and waged an arson attack against an Alawite shrine in Aleppo last December. It also notes that men who may have been affiliated with the new government executed Alawites and members of the Twelver Shia sect in the Hama province.
The report notes in January and February, HTS loyalists conducted “door-to-door interrogations and select executions” of Alawite Muslims around the Mediterranean coast. In March, the report adds, “the murders escalated to full-blown sectarian massacres” of Alawites in Latakia and Tartus based on allegations of “pro-Assad remnants.””
Benjamin Bartee, author of Broken English Teacher: Notes From Exile (now available in paperback), is an independent Bangkok-based American journalist with opposable thumbs.
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