Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa drew an ecstatic reception Sunday night at Manhattan�s Mandarin Hotel, where hundreds of U.S.-based Syrians � including a small group of Syrian Jews � gathered to greet the rebel-turned-head-of-state days before his landmark address to the United Nations General Assembly.

The gathering, organized by Sharaa�s officials and facilitated by the Syrian Foreign Ministry, marked the first time in decades that members of New York�s tight-knit Syrian Jewish community attended an official event with a sitting Syrian leader. Eleven Jews were present, part of a wider crowd that filled the ballroom with chants and applause.

�It was very emotional and inspiring,� said Joe Jajati, a Syrian-born Jewish businessman, who described the president as welcoming �everybody, including the Jews, very nicely.�

Two attendees wearing kippot took the floor. One, David Shelly, pledged $100,000 for Syria�s reconstruction. Sharaa laughed � �not enough,� he quipped � but by all accounts appeared moved. �They don�t need money, but it excited them to see this support,� Jajati told Ynet.

Sharaa�s New York visit underscores Syria�s abrupt reentry onto the world stage. On Wednesday he will become the first Syrian president in six decades to speak at the UNGA � a symbolic moment for a country still rebuilding after the collapse of Bashar al-Assad�s regime in December 2024.

The Syrian leader, once a jihadist commander with a $10 million U.S. bounty on his head, has tried to reposition himself as a pragmatic statesman. In an interview with CBS�s 60 Minutes, Sharaa praised Donald Trump for lifting U.S. sanctions after their May meeting in Saudi Arabia, calling it a �historic decision,� and signaled he hopes to meet the former president again during his trip.

�We saved the people from oppression,� Sharaa said, defending his record. �We expelled Iranian militias and Hezbollah from the region. All of these noble acts should have been the role of the international community.�

The outreach to diaspora Jews comes as Syria edges closer to a tentative security pact with Israel � talks that both sides say have made �certain progress.� Netanyahu said Sunday that discussions were moving forward, while a U.S. official told The Times of Israel the agreement was �99 percent done,� with a final deal expected within two weeks.

Optimism within the diaspora mirrors that mood. �We are feeling more optimistic,� Jajati said.

(YWN World Headquarters – NYC)