Syria ‘shakes off’ past with removal from US ‘terror’ list, says al-Sharaa

The US move would be a major sanctions relief for Syria, aiming to boost post-war reconstruction.Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa hailed the United States’ removal of his country from the “state sponsors of terrorism” list, a major sanctions relief step for a country aiming to boost post-war reconstruction.“Today, Syria shakes off a dark stain and tears away a painful chapter of its past to embark on a path of development, reconstruction and rebuilding,” al-Sharaa said in a speech.Recommended Stories list of 4 itemslist 1 of 4Israel, Turkiye and the post-Abrahamic Middle Eastlist 2 of 4Syria, Israel hold US-mediated talks in Jordan to de-escalate tensionslist 3 of 4‘Barrel bomb mufti’ sentenced to life in Syrialist 4 of 4US removes Syria from ‘state sponsor of terrorism’ listend of listWashington’s decision on Monday rescinded a decades-old designation that came with severe economic restrictions, marking another step in warming ties between the countries following the 2024 ouster of longtime Syrian ruler Bashar al-Assad.Al-Sharaa expressed his “many thanks to the President of the United States of America, Donald Trump, and to all the friendly and supportive nations that stood by us”.US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said in a statement that Monday’s move “will help foster additional investment in Syria to promote political and economic stability”.But the Treasury stressed that its removal of restrictions on Syria “does not change Treasury’s posture with regards to countering global terrorism and our commitment to hold bad actors in Syria accountable”.The US listed Syria as a “state sponsor of terrorism” in 1979, accusing the country, then under the rule of Hafez al-Assad, Bashar’s father, of supporting Palestinian fighter groups and other armed movements in neighbouring Lebanon.Monday’s move gave Syria “a path to prosperity”, according to US Secretary of State Marco Rubio. The action “eliminates the final major barriers for private sector investment in Syria and promotes Syria’s economic recovery and reintegration into the global economy,” he said in a statement.