Germany has reacted to the "handshake controversy" wherein Syrian de-facto ruler Ahmed Hussein al-Sharaa, best known by his nom de guerre Abu Mohammad al-Jolani, refused to shake hands with German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock during her visit to Syria on Friday.
Baerbock was accompanied by French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot. Video from the awkward encounter shows Barrot starting to extend his hand, but then stopping short of a handshake. Baerbock appeared to initially reach for the new Syrian leader but clasped her hands instead. While Barrot was given a customary handshake, al-Jolani refused to shake hands with Baerbock, instead opting to place his right hand on his heart.
The incident triggered an online debate over global political greeting protocol, with some calling al-Jolani's gesture disdainful.
De nieuwe ‘gematigde’ leider van Syrië Abu Mohammad al-Julani wil de Duitse minister van Buitenlandse Zaken Annalena Baerbock geen hand geven omdat ze een vrouw is.
— Strijder124 (@Strijder124) January 3, 2025
Baerbock, leider van de linkse partij 'De Groenen', laat zien dat ze geen ruggengraat heeft. Als het om de Islam… pic.twitter.com/pRzHVAnVlS
However, Baerbock has broken the silence over the incident, stating that it was expected. "As I travelled here, it was clear to me that there would obviously be no ordinary handshakes," Baerbock told reporters. "But it was also clear … that not only I but also the French foreign minister did not share this view. And accordingly, the French foreign minister did not extend his hands," she stressed.
Mohammad al-Jolani is the head of the main Islamic rebel group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, or HTS. A former affiliate of al-Qaida, the group has been listed as a terrorist organisation by the United States and the United Kingdom. The Syrian leader was a former jihadist, who claims to have shed the view, now opting to portray himself as a more moderate leader.
Earlier, a video circulated online showing al-Jolani gesturing to a young woman to cover her hair before he posed for a photo with her last week. However, the Syrian leader dismissed the controversy, stating that he did not force her.
"I did not force her. But it's my personal freedom. I want photos taken for me the way that suits me," al-Jolani told BBC News. The woman, Lea Kheirallah, too said that she was not bothered by the request and the rebel leader asked her a "gentle and fatherly way" and that she thought "the leader has the right to be presented in the way he sees fit".
Baerbock and Barrot are the first European Union ministers to visit Syria since the ousting of Bashar Assad. During the meeting with al-Jolani, the ministers raised the issue of women’s rights in the country. Baerbock said she received acknowledgement "from the new Syrian authorities that there will be broad participation – particularly by women – in the political transition."
