Syrian President Ahmed al-Shara’s meeting with President Trump in Washington signifies a new turn for al-Shara, a former Islamist rebel leader who was once designated by the United States as a terrorist with a $10 million bounty on his head. Our reporter Christina Goldbaum describes the meeting.

The visit by President Ahmed al-Shara is another step in the transformation of the former rebel leader once wanted by the United States as a terrorist.

© Jacquelyn Martin/Associated Press

Ten months after rebels toppled the long-entrenched Assad regime, little-checked bloodshed has led many Syrians to abandon hope that the years of brutality may be over.