This month, the world’s eyes will once again turn to New York for the United Nations General Assembly, the centerpiece of global diplomacy. Yet this September carries a looming moral crisis: the very real possibility that Ahmad al-Sharaa, former commander of Jabhat al-Nusra, al-Qaeda’s affiliate in Syria, and once a man with a U.S. bounty on his head, may take the UN podium, presented as a respected statesman.
Such a moment would not merely be a diplomatic misstep; it would represent the embodiment of the West’s march of folly: the transformation of a man responsible for massacres, sectarian cleansing, and the destruction of cities into a “legitimate” voice on the world stage.
Picture the scene: the iconic UN hall, filled with delegates and flashing cameras, as Julani, no longer in fatigues but in a suit and tie, stands beneath the UN’s blue flag. Instead of facing trial before an international tribunal, he is celebrated as a political leader. This image would be a moral perversion, striking at the heart of the already fragile international order and eroding what little trust remains in the UN’s mission.
The West prides itself on human rights and universal values. Yet it repeatedly falls into the same trap: rehabilitating men with blood on their hands under the guise of “pragmatism” and “inclusion.” These are nothing more than polished euphemisms for appeasement, allowing those who terrorized nations to be rewarded instead of punished.
Instead of demanding justice for thousands of murdered innocents, policymakers are normalizing Julani’s crimes, erasing the suffering of his victims with the stroke of a diplomatic pen.
This is not reconciliation, it is capitulation. The moment a former terrorist leader is granted a global platform, the norms that have guided diplomacy since 1945 are trampled underfoot. If the UN legitimizes Julani, the vow of “Never Again” becomes meaningless, and the lessons of history are betrayed.
What message does this send to the youth of the Middle East and beyond? That the path to power is not through education, peaceful reform, or diplomacy, but through Kalashnikovs, suicide bombings, and the destruction of culture.
If terrorism is rewarded with microphones and applause, the foundation of the global fight against ISIS and its affiliates collapses. Extremism will no longer be a path of shame, but a shortcut to international prestige.
A call to the free world!
This September is a test, not only for the UN, but for every democracy claiming to uphold human rights and justice. Western leaders must draw a clear red line: Terrorists are war criminals, not legitimate partners.
Civil society also bears responsibility. Protests must begin now, not later, outside the United Nations in New York, sending a clear and unmistakable message: The butcher of Syria’s minorities must never be allowed to stand on the stage of global diplomacy.
History will judge harshly those who surrendered to cynicism and convenience, betraying the memory of innocent lives destroyed by terror. The free world must act, before the very institutions built to defend humanity become tools for those who once sought to destroy it.