Syria's de facto leader, Ahmed al-Sharaa, said his country is torn by war and poses no threat to its neighbors or the West.

Speaking to the BBC's Jeremy Bowen in Damascus, Sharaa said sanctions on Syria should be lifted and that his group, Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), should be delisted as a terrorist group. .

Sharaa led HTS and other rebel groups in the offensive that toppled former President Bashar al-Assad's regime less than two weeks ago.

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