This is John Batchel, a conversation with colleague Jonathan Shanzer of FD, just back from the Middle East, about Syria.

Mr. Trump shakes the hands of a man named Al-Shara, Muhammad bin Salman's Fetz, a man named Al-Shara.

It's about Syria. He's the self-named former Al-Qaeda chief now president of Syria, but I list a number of cutthroats that are gathering in Syria.

This is ungoverned territory, meaning it attracts the likes of Palestinian Islamic jihad, Hamas, the Russians, the Druze have a national militia now to guard them, the Alawites,

all manner of desperadoes.

And why are they lifting sanctions?

Jonathan explains.

But much to learn about Syria.

Right now, it was darkness visible.

It's still darkness visible.

More tonight.

They don't, but they're still trying to save Syria from itself.

And so we're watching the United States.

We've already removed sanctions against this regime, despite the fact that it is led by al-Qaeda or reformed

al-Qaeda, depending on your perspective. And I think it was probably too soon to do this,

but the administration would like to try to empower pragmatists. We're watching the Saudis and

the Emirates and some of the other pragmatic Middle East states trying to woo Al-Shara into their orbit.

But at the same time, John, we are watching the Turks and the Qataris.

Of course, these are the Muslim Brotherhood actors we just discussed.

They are trying to woo Al-Shaara as well.

And then you have all of these disparate actors inside the Syrian state that don't get along.

And here, of course, we're talking about the embattled Alawites, the former allies of Bashar al-Assad, who's now in exile in Russia.

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