The process is utilising all the arts and instruments of political marketing, which differ little from commercial marketing. The obvious purpose of this transformation, crafted by teams of political media experts, is to push a new image of the Syrian leader who had long been affiliated with terrorism and jihadist organisations.  

It is not unlikely that these efforts are being orchestrated through a US-Israeli campaign. Many were surprised when it came to light that Washington and other Western capitals were communicating with Al-Sharaa directly, even though he is still a wanted terrorist with a $10 million bounty on his head. Less surprising, after this, is how Washington silently dropped the bounty as a prelude to lifting his terrorist designation.

In a recent interview with the BBC, Christopher Beach, a professor of marketing at Tottenham University, described how public image promotion can make or break a public figure’s fortunes. Political marketing applies the principles of commercial marketing to the political sphere. In effect, the aim is to create not so much an image but a “brand” to shape the public’s perception of a figure. This brand is then marketed to build its popularity. Political marketing, which has become a multimillion-dollar industry, has the power to turn a person’s image around, winning the trust of target audiences where none had existed before.

In the same BBC programme, Paul Baines, a marketing expert from the University of Leicester, described Al-Qaeda as the world’s first terrorist brand name. While it attracted fighters, it was globally rejected. Terrorist organisations are caught between advancing their agendas through violence and attracting the public support necessary for their survival. Towards the latter end, they will begin to change their methods or at least try to change how the public perceives them.

This is the process unfolding with Al-Sharaa: a complete break with his controversial past, as though it had never existed, so that he can be recast as a national liberation leader. Step one was for him to step out of his jihadist attire and step into a military uniform, which conforms better to the universal image of a revolutionary leader.

On the other hand, Baines stressed, the success of such a strategy ultimately depends on actual actions and policies, not just superficial alterations.

* A version of this article appears in print in the 9 January, 2025 edition of Al-Ahram Weekly