Julani was born in Saudi Arabia, later lived in Damascus, and joined al-Qaeda before becoming the head of Hayat Tahrir al-Sham in Syria.

Syria’s interim president made his first trip abroad on Sunday and arrived in Saudi Arabia in a move likely trying to signal Damascus’ shift away from Iran as its main regional ally. Syria's transitional President Ahmed al-Sharaa met Saudi Arabian Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in Riyadh as Syrian leader.

Sharaa, met Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in Riyadh on Sunday in his first foreign trip as Syrian leader, in a sign of the major shifts under way in regional alliances. Sharaa assumed power as transitional president last week,