Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa greets Donald Trump as Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman looks on, Riyadh, May 14, 2025

EU Agrees Process to Ease Sanctions on Syria

The Sectarian Killings in Homs

UPDATE 1235 GMT:

Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa has hosted the US envoy to Syria, Thomas Barrack, in Damascus.

Maj. Gen. Kevin Leahy, the commander of the US-led coalition against the Islamic State, was also in the meeting.

The discussion followed the raising of the American flag at the US Embassy in Damascus for the first time since 2012.

UPDATE, MAY 28:

The European Union has lifted all sanctions on Syria.

The entities removed from the sanctions list include the Central Bank, oil and cotton processing companies, media outlets, and telecommunications structures.

The European Union’s foreign policy head Kaja Kallas posted:

This decision is simply the right thing to do, at this historic time, for the EU to genuinely support Syria’s recovery and a political transition that fulfils the aspirations of all Syrians. The EU has stood with the Syrian people throughout the last 14 years, and it will continue to do so.

Today the EU reaffirms its commitment as a partner for the transition, one that helps the Syrian people to reunite and rebuild a new, inclusive, peaceful Syria.

Sanctions on individuals and entities linked to the ousted Assad regime have been extended until June 1, 2026.

UPDATE, MAY 25:

Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa has met the new Trump Administration envoy to Syria, Thomas Barrack, in Istanbul, Turkey.

Sharaa received Barrack, who is the US Ambassador to Turkey, on Saturday. The American said in a statement afterwards of the “historic” meeting:

If we had not acted so promptly and deliberately to remove sanctions our partners in the region would not be able to provide donor dollars, supplies, and energy to relieve the plight and trauma of the traumatized Syrian population….

The cessation of sanctions against Syria will preserve the integrity of our primary objective – the enduring defeat of ISIS – and will give the people of Syria a chance for a better future.

Barrack “commended” Sharaa on “meaningful steps” towards “foreign terrorist fighters”, measures against the Islamic State, relations with Israel, and camps and detention centers — overseen by the US-backed, Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces — in northeast Syria.

For the first time, a Syrian Government delegation visited the al-Hol camp. The facility, holding ISIS members and their families, has around 37,000 people from dozens of countries, including 14,500 Iraqis.

Sharaa and Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shibani also conferred for 90 minutes with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan, Defense Minister Yaşar Güler, and intelligence chief İbrahim Kalın.

UPDATE, MAY 24:

The US Treasury has implemented Donald Trump’s announcement of the removal of Assad-era sanctions on Syria.

The Office of Foreign Assets Control issued a general license to “enable new investment and private sector activity”.

The State Department issued a waiver under the “Caesar Act”, which sanctioned the Assad regime over its mass killings of detainees, to “enable [US] foreign partners, allies, and the region to further unlock Syria’s potential”.

UPDATE, MAY 22:

European Council President António Costa has posted after a conversation with Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa:

UPDATE, MAY 21:

The Syrian Foreign Ministry has welcomed the lifting of sanctions by the European Union.

“The step represents a pivotal moment and a beginning of a new chapter in Syrian-European relations, based on shared interests and mutual respect,” the Ministry said. It cited new horizons for cooperation, allowing Syrians in Europe to re-invest in their homeland, to return to the country, and to contribute to reconstruction and development.

The decision also provides a broader opportunity to enhance political and security cooperation between Syria and Europe, ensuring mutual benefit for both parties.

As we embark on this new phase, the Syrian government affirms its readiness to enhance cooperation with European companies and investors and create a supportive environment for economic recovery and sustainable development.

UPDATE 1618 GMT:

Syria has also had a diplomatic and economic breakthrough with an agreement with neighboring Jordan.

#Syria and #Jordan signed a Memorandum of Understanding to establish the Higher Coordination Council, which aims to enhance cooperation in the fields of water, energy, economy, and transportation, and to support #Syria’s reconstruction through an ambitious roadmap.

[image or embed]

— Qusay Noor (@qusaynoor.net) May 20, 2025 at 3:49 PM

UPDATE, MAY 20:

Diplomats say the European Union has approved the lifting of all economic sanctions on Syria.

Ambassadors from all 27 members states confirmed a preliminary agreement, which should be formally presented at a meeting of foreign ministers in Brussels later Tuesday.

UPDATE, MAY 16:

US Senator Jeanne Shaheen says Jordan’s King Abdullah II warned the Trump Administration against assassinating President Ahmed al-Sharaa.

Shaheen, a Democrat, met the King earlier this month.

“I have been concerned by some rumours that I have heard in…some foreign policy circles of the administration that one option that’s been suggested is assassinating the new leader of the Syrian government, Ahmed al-Sharaa,” she said in a Senate hearing on Thursday.

The senator said Abdullah warned against any assassination.

One of the things that was pointed out to us by King Abdullah was that a change in leadership of that kind would create an all-out civil war in Syria. That would not be good to take advantage of the opportunity we have to move that country forward.

UPDATE 2112 GMT:

Analyst Hassan Hassan evaluates the significance of Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa’s speech to the nation on Wednesday:

He made clear that while each of these countries helped Syria return to its feet, none would dictate its path. He spoke in terms that balanced them against each other, not in terms that placed Syria under one of them. It was a careful act of equalization.

He made that point explicitly. He promised that Syria wouldn’t be under one singular sphere of influence as was in the past. He promised that it wouldn’t be a source of pressure or insecurity for any of its neighbors.

Syria is open to cooperation but closed to domination. Gratitude did not come at the cost of independence. That was the point.

UPDATE 1902 GMT:

Images of Syrian Foreign Minister Assad al-Shaibani meeting US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Republican Senator Lindsey Graham in Antalya, Turkey:

UPDATE 1733 GMT:

The US Treasury has begun the lifting of sanctions on Syria.

UPDATE 0359 GMT:

US officials say they were caught off guard by Donald Trump’s announcement lifting sanctions on Syria.

A “senior US official” said the White House did not issue any memorandum or directive to sanctions officials at the State Department or the Treasury Department.

The officials were confused about how the Administration would lift sanctions packages and levels, which restrictions would be eased, and when the White House wanted to begin the process.

“Everyone is trying to figure out how to implement this,” said one official.

The senior US official said that, after months of debate, there was no indication as Trump flew to Saudi Arabia that he had made a decision.

A White House official said Turkey and Saudi Arabia asked Trump to lift the sanctions and meet with Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa.

UPDATE, MAY 15:

President Ahmed al-Sharaa’s address to the Syrian people on Wednesday, summarizing the Government’s achievements in the six months after liberation:

UPDATE 1329 GMT:

Celebration in Homs of the announcement that US sanctions on Syria will be lifted:

Hossam al-Khouli, 50, the owner of a handicraft shop in Damascus’s Old City, said, “For 15 years the world had this picture of us Syrians as refugees. Now they see us as we are. You can finally see light and you can see hope.”

UPDATE 1248 GMT:

En route to Qatar, Donald Trump has hailed a “great” meeting with Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa: “Young, attractive guy. Tough guy. Strong past. Very strong past. Fighter”.

Trump declared, “He’s got a real shot at holding it together. I spoke with [Turkish] President Erdoğan, who is very friendly with him. He feels she’s got a shot of doing a good job. It’s a torn-up country.”

UPDATE, MAY 14:

Donald Trump has met Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa in Saudi Arabia.

Photos showed Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman, who brokered Tuesday’s announcement of the lifting of US sanctions on Damascus, looking on. Turkish President, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan reportedly joined the meeting by telephone.

A White House spokesperson said Trump urged Sharaa to “deport Palestinian terrorists”, to establish Syrian ties with Israel, to help fight the Islamic State, and to deal with the country’s remaining chemical weapons.

Trump confirmed to the Gulf Cooperation Council after the meeting, “[I am] ordering the cessation of sanctions against Syria to give them a fresh start. It gives them a chance for greatness. The sanctions were really crippling, very powerful.”

The Syrian Foreign Ministry said the meeting discussed how “to enhance Syrian-American partnership in the field of counter-terrorism and to cooperate in eliminating the influence of non-state actors and non-Syrian armed groups that hinder stability, including Islamic State and other threats”.

Foreign Minister Assad al-Shaibani and US Secretary of State Marco Rubio will soon meet.

ORIGINAL ENTRY, MAY 13: Donald Trump says the US will lift sanctions that were imposed on Syria over the mass killing and repression of the Assad regime.

Saudi Arabia has been working for the removal of the international restrictions, and Trump made the announcement during a press conference in the Kingdom.

Amid the lavish reception by his host Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Trump said, “I will be ordering the cessation of sanctions against Syria in order to give them a chance at greatness. It’s their time to shine. We’re taking them all off. Good luck Syria, show us something very special.”

He added that Secretary of State Marco Rubio will see Syrian Foreign Minister Assad al-Shaibani. And asked if he expected to meet Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa — who is still on a US terrorist list, from his days leading the anti-Assadist faction Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham — while in Saudi Arabia, he replied, “I think so.”

A White House official later told Axios that Trump “agreed to say hello to the Syrian President while in Saudi Arabia tomorrow”.

The Syrian Foreign Ministry posted:

This development marks a pivotal turning point for the Syrian people as we seek to emerge from a long and painful chapter of war. The removal of these sanctions offers a vital opportunity for Syria to pursue stability, self-sufficiency, and meaningful national reconstruction, led by and for the Syrian people.

UN special envoy Geir Pedersen said the step was “crucial to enabling the delivery of essential services, including health & education, reviving the Syrian economy, unlocking meaningful support from the region, & enabling many Syrians to contribute actively to a national effort to rebuild their country”.

Saudi Arabia had lobbied the Trump Administration for months to ease the sanctions, imposed because the Assad regime’s attempt to crush the Syrian uprising of March 2011.

Sharaa reinforced the effort with offers of access to Syrian oil, reconstruction contracts, and a Trump Tower in Damascus.

Radwan Ziadeh, a Syrian writer and activist close to Sharaa, said, as he shared a photograph of an initial mockup of the Trump Tower:

This is amazing, it worked. This is how you win his heart and mind.

He said Sharaa will probably show Trump the design during their meeting in Riyadh on Wednesday.

The idea of a Trump Tower in the heart of Damascus was presented by a US Republican senator to Sharaa’s team.