CNN
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Abu Mohammad al-Jolani’s journey to Damascus was a long one. He spoke openly about his change. From a young al-Qaeda fighter two decades ago to a rebel commander advocating sectarian tolerance.

It’s a journey in which he had plenty of time to plan where and how he would mark his arrival and to refine his narrative – his message to those who brought him to power, those who might overthrow him, and others who could overthrow him can keep him in power.

It’s no surprise that the Islamist rebel chose the revered Umayyad Mosque in Damascus – not a television studio, nor a recently absent presidential palace, but a site of immense religious significance that, at 1,300 years old, is one of the oldest mosques in the world – to achieve this message.

“This victory, my brothers, is a victory for the entire Islamic nation,” he said to his small entourage, who stumbled behind him against the backdrop of the mosque’s distinctive black and white stone splendor.

It was a message to everyone who had brought him to power and sent his Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) fighters across Syria with astonishing speed to topple President Bashir al-Assad.

It was also a message to the newly liberated Syrians. “This victory, my brothers, by the grace of God Almighty, follows the sacrifices of the martyrs, widows and orphans. This victory, my brothers, is the result of the suffering of those who endured captivity,” he said.

In a country where the God you choose and the way you pray can define your class, limit your ambitions and pit you against your neighbor, Jolani at the Umayyad Mosque sent a very clear signal. He is a Sunni Muslim and belongs to the majority in Syria. Assad was an Alawite. There are Christians, Druze, Shia Muslims, Ismailis and more.

But the words he chose seemed designed to break those old boundaries. “This new triumph, my brothers, marks a new chapter in the history of the region, a history fraught with dangers that made Syria a playground for Iranian ambitions, spreading sectarianism and fomenting corruption,” he said.

Singling out Iran seems to send a message to the Tehran theocracy – that their meddling is over, that their easy land access to their mega-proxy Hezbollah in Lebanon is over, that their support for Syria’s Hezbollah is over, and that homeland too Iran’s weapons stockpile is over, which they once had.

But it is a message that Jolani knows will be heard in Tel Aviv and Washington, where he is considered a member of a banned terrorist organization and has a $10 million bounty on his head. A message that tells them, “Your interests are understood in the new Syria,” and an understanding on his part that these are the powers capable of bringing him down.

Jolani has gone to great lengths in his race to Damascus to ensure that US President Joe Biden and even President-elect Donald Trump know his intentions. It is no coincidence that in the days before his overthrow of Assad he chose a US television network, CNN, rather than an Arab one, for an important interview, claiming he had separated himself from other jihadists because of their brutal tactics.

A few hours later, Biden said he had heard Jolani “say the right things” but insisted that the rebel leader would be judged by his actions.

Jolani’s message was also attuned to regional powers he needs to keep on his side, promising to clean things up. “Syria will be cleansed,” he said, referring to the country’s regional reputation as a drug state. Assad’s Syria has become “the world’s leading source of Captagon,” an amphetamine-like drug, and crime in the region.

Jolani’s mosque speech was about arrival and survival. However, it is his actions that will ensure the latter.