US officials have been in direct contact with the Syrian rebel group that ousted Assad, Blinken says

AQABA, Jordan (AP) — American officials have been in direct contact with the terrorist-designated rebel group that led the overthrow of Syrian President Bashar Assad, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Saturday.

Blinken, speaking at a news conference in Jordan, was the first U.S. official to publicly confirm contacts between the Biden administration and Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, or HTS, which led a coalition of armed opposition groups that drove Assad from power and into asylum in Russia last weekend.

Along with counterparts from eight Arab nations and Turkey and senior officials from the European Union and United Nations, Blinken signed off on a set of principles meant to guide Syria’s transition to a peaceful, nonsectarian and inclusive country.

Blinken would not discuss details of the direct contacts with HTS but said it was important for the U.S. to convey messages to the group about its conduct and how it intends to govern in a transition period.

“Yes, we have been in contact with HTS and with other parties,” Blinken said in the port city of Aqaba. He added that “our message to the Syrian people is this: We want them to succeed and we’re prepared to help them do so.”

HTS, once an affiliate of al-Qaida, has been designed as a foreign terrorist organization by the U.S. State Department since 2018. That designation carries severe sanctions, including a ban on the provision of any “material support” to the group or its members.

The sanctions do not, however, legally bar U.S. officials from communicating with designated groups.

In an interview Saturday on Syrian television, the group’s leader, Ahmad al-Sharaa, formerly known as Abu Mohammed al-Golani, did not address any direct contact with the United States, but said the new authorities in Damascus are in touch with Western embassies.

He also said that "we don’t intend to enter any conflict because there is general exhaustion in Syria.”

HTS has worked to establish security and start a political transition after seizing Damascus and has tried to reassure a public both stunned by Assad’s fall and concerned about extremist jihadis among the rebels. Insurgent leaders say the group has broken with its extremist past.

Blinken also stressed that “the success that we’ve had in ending the territorial caliphate” of the Islamic State group remains “a critical mission.” And citing the U.S.-backed Syrian Democratic Forces, the Kurdish fighters who in recent years drove IS out of large areas of Syria, he called it ”very important at this moment that they continue that role because this is a moment of instability” in which IS “will seek to regroup and take advantage of.”

A joint statement after the meeting of foreign ministers urged all parties to cease hostilities in Syria and expressed support for a locally led transitional political process. It called for preventing the reemergence of extremist groups and ensuring the security and safe destruction of chemical weapons stockpiles.

“We don’t want Syria to fall into chaos,” Jordan’s foreign minister, Ayman Safadi, told journalists.

A separate statement by Arab foreign ministers called for U.N.-supervised elections based on a new constitution approved by Syrians. Their statement condemned Israel’s incursion into the buffer zone with Syria and adjacent sites over the past week as a “heinous occupation” and demanded the withdrawal of Israeli forces.

U.S. officials say al-Sharaa has been making welcomed comments about protecting minority and women’s rights but they remain skeptical that he will follow through on them in the long run.

On Friday, the rebels and Syria’s unarmed opposition worked to safely turn over to U.S. officials an American man who had been imprisoned by Assad.

U.S. officials are continuing their search for Austin Tice, an American journalist who disappeared 12 years ago near Damascus. "We have impressed upon everyone we’ve been in contact with the importance of helping find Austin Tice and bringing him home,” Blinken said.

In other developments:

—Turkey reopened its embassy in Damascus, becoming the first country to do so since the end of Assad’s rule. The embassy suspended operations 12 years ago due to insecurity during Syria's civil war.

—Al-Sharaa said in the TV interview that “the pretexts that Israel uses have ended” for its airstrikes that have destroyed much of the Syrian army's assets in recent days. He said “the Israelis have crossed the rules of engagement” but that the insurgent group is not about to enter a conflict with Israel.

—The leader of Lebanon’s Hezbollah militants said the group has lost its military supply line through Syria but that the new authority there might reinstate the route.

—A Syrian war monitor and a citizen journalist said gunmen attacked members of a Syrian insurgent group, Failaq al-Sham, in the country’s coastal region, killing or wounding 15 of them on Saturday. That region is home to many members of Assad’s minority Alawite sect.

Associated Press writer Bassem Mroue in Beirut contributed.

Iraq's Foreign Minister Fuad Hussein, left, and Qatar's Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al-Thani during a meeting with the foreign ministers of the Arab Contact Group on Syria in Jordan's southern Red Sea coastal city of Aqaba, Saturday Dec. 14, 2024. (Andrew Caballero-Reynolds/Pool via AP)

A Syrian fighter from rebel group, fires towards a poster at the entrance of the notorious security detention centre called Palestine Branch, which pictures the late Syrian President Hafez Assad and his son the ouster Syrian president Bashar Assad, in Damascus, Syria, Saturday, Dec. 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Hussein Malla)

Syrian naval vessels and small civilian ships are seen destroyed by an Israeli airstrike last week in the port of Latakia, Syria, Saturday, Dec. 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Omar Albam)

The UAE's Foreign Minister Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed al-Nahyan, left, speaks with Saudi Arabia's Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan al-Saud during a meeting with the foreign ministers of the Arab Contact Group on Syria in Jordan's southern Red Sea coastal city of Aqaba, Saturday Dec. 14, 2024. (Andrew Caballero-Reynolds/Pool via AP)

Workers clean outside the Turkish embassy in Damascus, Syria, Saturday, Dec. 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Omar Sanadiki)

A Syrian fighter from rebel group, observes a prison room at the security detention center called Palestine Branch in Damascus, Syria, Saturday, Dec. 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Hussein Malla)

A Syrian girl with the colours of the "revolutionary" Syrian flag on her face, takes a selfie in front of the ancient Aleppo Citadel in the old city of Aleppo, Syria, Saturday, Dec. 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Khalil Hamra)

A Syrian fighter guards holding a gun with a flower placed in the barrel, as residents visit the ancient Aleppo Citadel in the old city of Aleppo, Syria, Saturday, Dec. 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Khalil Hamra)

A Syrian boy look on as he carries bread in the city of Aleppo, Syria, Saturday, Dec. 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Khalil Hamra)

A man draws the "revolutionary" Syrian flag on a girl's face at the ancient Aleppo Citadel in the old city of Aleppo, Syria, Saturday, Dec. 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Khalil Hamra)

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken delivers a statement to the press after the meeting with the foreign ministers of the Arab Contact Group on Syria in Jordan's southern Red Sea coastal city of Aqaba, Saturday Dec. 14, 2024. (Andrew Caballero-Reynolds/Pool via AP)

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken delivers a statement to the press after the meeting with the foreign ministers of the Arab Contact Group on Syria in Jordan's southern Red Sea coastal city of Aqaba, Saturday Dec. 14, 2024. (Andrew Caballero-Reynolds/Pool via AP)

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken leaves after delivering a statement to the press after the meeting with the foreign ministers of the Arab Contact Group on Syria in Jordan's southern Red Sea coastal city of Aqaba, Saturday Dec. 14, 2024. (Andrew Caballero-Reynolds/Pool via AP)

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken delivers a statement to the press after the meeting with the foreign ministers of the Arab Contact Group on Syria in Jordan's southern Red Sea coastal city of Aqaba, Saturday Dec. 14, 2024. (Andrew Caballero-Reynolds/Pool via AP)

Turkey's Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan, left, speaks with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken during a meeting with the foreign ministers of the Arab Contact Group on Syria in Jordan's southern Red Sea coastal city of Aqaba, Saturday Dec. 14, 2024. (Andrew Caballero-Reynolds/Pool via AP)

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken speaks during his meeting with the United Nations (UN) Special Envoy for Syria in Jordan's southern Red Sea coastal city of Aqaba, Saturday Dec. 14, 2024. (Andrew Caballero-Reynolds/Pool via AP)

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Yemen's Houthi rebels on Wednesday released the crew of the Galaxy Leader, a vehicle carrier seized in November 2023 at the start of their attacks on shipping in the Red Sea corridor over the Israel-Hamas war.

The move by the Iranian-backed Houthis marks their latest effort to de-escalate their attacks following a ceasefire in Gaza. However, it came as U.S. President Donald Trump moved to reinstate a terrorism designation he made on the group late in his first term that had been revoked by President Joe Biden, potentially setting the stage for new tensions with the rebels.

The Houthis said they released the sailors after mediation by Oman, a sultanate on the eastern edge of the Arabian Peninsula that's long been an interlocutor with the Houthis. A Royal Air Force of Oman jet took a flight to Yemen earlier Wednesday and took off again about an hour after the Houthi announcement with the crew, who smiled as they stepped off into freedom in Muscat.

The Houthis also said Hamas separately requested the release of the ship's crew of 25, who included mariners from the Philippines, Bulgaria, Romania, Ukraine and Mexico.

“This step comes in support of the ceasefire agreement in Gaza,” the Houthis said in a statement on rebel-controlled SABA news agency.

In the Philippines, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. confirmed the release of 17 Filipino crew members, describing the moment as an “utmost joy.” The Filipinos, who were in the custody of the Philippine Embassy in Muscat, Oman, would be flown home soon, Marcos said.

Bulgaria’s Foreign Ministry confirmed the release of two Bulgarians identified by officials as the ship’s captain, Lyubomir Chanev, and assistant captain, Danail Veselinov. A government jet was on the way to Oman to bring the Bulgarians home, the ministry said.

Hans Grundberg, the United Nations’ special envoy to Yemen, called the crew’s release “heartwarming news that puts an end to the arbitrary detention and separation that they and their families endured for more than a year.”

“This is a step in the right direction, and I urge Ansar Allah to continue these positive steps on all fronts, including ending all maritime attacks,” he added, using another name for the Houthis.

The Houthis said they hijacked the Galaxy Leader over its connection to Israel. The attack launched the rebels' campaign targeting ships in international waters in the Red Sea, the Gulf of Aden and the Bab el-Mandeb Strait that connects them.

A representative for the Galaxy Leader's owners had no comment on Wednesday.

The Bahamas-flagged vessel is affiliated with an Israeli billionaire, Abraham “Rami” Ungar, who is known as one of the richest men in Israel.

The Houthi attack on the Galaxy Leader saw the rebels launch a helicopter-borne raid. Propaganda footage of the raid has been played constantly by the Houthis, who even shot a music video aboard the ship at one point.

On Monday, the Houthis signaled they now will limit their attacks in the Red Sea corridor to only Israeli-affiliated ships after a ceasefire began in the Gaza Strip, but warned wider assaults could resume if needed.

However, it likely won’t be enough to encourage global firms to reenter the route that’s crucial for cargo and energy shipments moving between Asia and Europe. Their attacks have halved traffic through the region, cutting deeply into revenues for Egypt, which runs the Suez Canal linking the Red Sea to the Mediterranean.

The release of the vessel's crew now may have been an effort to curry favor with the U.S., though the ship still remains moored off the Yemeni port city of Hodeida.

“This gesture by the Houthis may be intended as a goodwill measure towards the new Trump administration,” said Yemen expert Mohammed al-Basha, of the Basha Report risk advisory firm.

However, Trump signed an order urging Secretary of State Marco Rubio to reinstate a foreign terrorist organization designation on the Houthis. Rubio separately called Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and the foreign minister of the United Arab Emirates, who have led a coalition battling the Houthis since 2015.

“Under President Trump, it is now the policy of the United States to cooperate with its regional partners to eliminate the Houthis’ capabilities and operations, deprive them of resources, and thereby end their attacks on U.S. personnel and civilians, U.S. partners, and maritime shipping in the Red Sea,” the White House said.

Biden lifted the designation early in his term, citing the humanitarian threat that the sanctions posed to ordinary Yemenis and to back an de facto ceasefire that still broadly holds in Yemen's war.

The Houthis have targeted over 100 merchant vessels with missiles and drones since the Israel-Hamas war in the Gaza Strip started in October 2023, after Hamas’ surprise attack on Israel that killed 1,200 people and saw 250 others taken hostage. Israel’s military offensive has killed over 46,000 Palestinians, according to local health officials who do not distinguish between civilians and combatants but say women and children make up more than half the fatalities.

The Houthis have sunk two vessels in their campaign that has also killed four sailors. Other missiles and drones have either been intercepted by separate U.S.- and European-led coalitions in the Red Sea or failed to reach their targets, which have also included Western military vessels.

The rebels had maintained that they only targeted ships linked to Israel, the U.S., or the U.K. However, many of the ships attacked had little or no connection, including some bound for Iran.

The tempo of Houthi attacks has slowed in recent weeks, particularly involving ships at sea. That may be due in part to the U.S. airstrike campaign. The U.S. and its partners alone have struck the Houthis over 260 times, according to the International Institute for Strategic Studies.

Associated Press writers Aamer Madhani in Washington and Jim Gomez in Manila, Philippines, contributed to this report.

A Houthi supporter shouts slogans during during an anti-U.S and Israel rally in Sanaa, Yemen, Friday, Jan. 17, 2025. (AP Photo/Osamah Abdulrahman)

Thousands of Houthi supporters raise banners during an anti-U.S and Israel rally in Sanaa, Yemen, Friday, Jan. 17, 2025. (AP Photo/Osamah Abdulrahman)

Houthi supporters step on an American flag during an anti-U.S and Israel rally in Sanaa, Yemen, Friday, Jan. 17, 2025. (AP Photo/Osamah Abdulrahman)

FILE - This photo released by the Houthi Media Center shows Houthi escort the cargo ship Galaxy Leader in the Red Sea off the coast of Yemen, Nov. 19, 2023. (Houthi Media Center via AP, File)