The President of the French Republic, Emmanuel Macron, became this Wednesday the first European leader to receive Syrian interim president Ahmed al Sharaa, a controversial figure because he led one of the branches of the terrorist organization Al Qaeda. With the fall of Bashar al-Assad's regime in DecemberThe new interim president has traded his jihadist attire for a dress and tie. Al Sharaa greeted Macron with a handshake—cordial but less effusive than usual for the Élysée Palace tenant—and answered all the questions posed by journalists.