Years ago the US offered $10 million for his head, today the Syrian president met with Donald Trump

US President Donald Trump met with the Syrian president in Saudi Arabia today and urged him to normalise relations with long-time foe Israel, following a surprise US announcement that it would lift all sanctions on the Islamist-led government.

Trump met with Syria's Ahmed al-Sharaa ahead of a summit between the United States and Gulf Arab countries, the Telegraph reports.

Photos posted on Saudi state television showed them shaking hands in the presence of Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince, Mohammed bin Salman, also known as MbS.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan joined Trump and MbS virtually at the meeting.

Trump asked Sharaa to join the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Morocco, which normalized relations with Israel under the US-brokered Abraham Accords in 2020.

The United States also hopes that Saudi Arabia will join the Abraham Accords. Discussions on the issue stalled after the war in Gaza broke out, and the kingdom insists there can be no normalization without Palestinian statehood.

Trump said Tuesday that Saudi Arabia will join the agreements at the appropriate time.

Read too Trump meets with Syrian President Ahmad al-Sharaa, has five demands for him

Despite concerns within sections of his administration over Syria's leaders' past ties to al Qaeda, Trump said Tuesday during a speech in Riyadh that he would lift sanctions on Syria in a major policy shift.

He also said that Washington was considering normalizing relations with the Syrian government starting with his meeting with Sharaa.

The lifting of sanctions came despite deep Israeli suspicion of the Sharaa administration, concerns that were initially shared by some American officials.

Israeli officials have continued to describe Sharaa as a jihadist, although he severed ties with al-Qaeda in 2016.

The decision is a major boost for Sharaa, who has been fighting to bring the country under the control of the Damascus government after the overthrow of former President Bashar al-Assad in December.

The lifting of US sanctions that cut Syria off from the global financial system will pave the way for greater engagement by humanitarian organizations working in Syria, facilitating foreign investment and trade as the country rebuilds.

US ally Israel has opposed easing sanctions on Syria and has escalated its military operations since Assad was toppled, saying it will not tolerate an Islamist presence in southern Syria.

Israel has occupied territory in the southwest of the country, warned the Syrian government against deploying forces there, and blown up most of the Syrian army's heavy weapons and equipment in the days after Assad's fall.

Read too Syrians across the country celebrate after Trump lifts all sanctions

The challenges facing Syria's new government were also highlighted in March when Assad loyalists attacked government forces, sparking revenge attacks in which Islamist gunmen killed hundreds of civilians from the Alawite minority, drawing strong US condemnation.

Sharaa was for years the leader of al-Qaeda's official wing in the Syrian conflict. He first joined the group in Iraq, where he spent five years in a US prison.

The United States offered a $10 million reward for Sharaa's head in December.

The Syrian Foreign Ministry said in a statement on Wednesday that the meeting between Trump and Sharaas included discussions about combating terrorism and cooperation in eliminating the influence of non-state actors and armed groups that threaten Syrian stability, including ISIS.

This meeting will be followed by another between the Syrian foreign minister and his American counterpart Marco Rubio.

Trump's first day on a four-day trip through the Gulf region was marked by lavish ceremonies and business deals, including a $600 billion commitment from Saudi Arabia to invest in the US and $142 billion in US arms sales to the kingdom.

Later on Wednesday, Trump will fly to Qatar's capital, Doha, where he will participate in a state visit with Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani and other officials.

Qatar, a key US ally, is expected to announce hundreds of billions of dollars in investments in the US.

Read too US to end sanctions on Syria - Trump says 'good luck'

Trump's visit to Doha came after the White House announced this week that it plans to accept a Boeing 747-8 aircraft, which will be equipped to serve as Air Force One, as a gift from the Qataris.

The luxury plane, which will be one of the most valuable gifts ever received by the US government, will eventually be donated to Trump's presidential library.

That has sparked anger from Democrats and bipartisan security concerns. Some officials have said it could create a perception of corruption, even in the absence of a quid pro quo.

While the exact details of the investments Qatar plans to announce on Wednesday were unclear, Qatar Airways was expected to announce a deal to buy about 100 wide-body aircraft from Boeing, according to a source familiar with the matter.

Following his visit to Qatar, Trump will fly to Abu Dhabi to meet with leaders of the United Arab Emirates on Thursday.

He is then scheduled to fly back to Washington on Friday, but he has said he may fly to Turkey instead for a possible meeting between Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. /Telegraph