The United States formally removed Syria from its list of state sponsors of terrorism on August 24, ending a designation that had been in place since 1979 under Hafez al-Assad’s presidency for supporting Palestinian and other armed groups [1, 2, 3, 4]. This move lifts decades-old U.S. sanctions restricting trade, investment, financial transactions, and foreign military assistance to Syria [1, 3, 4].

The U.S. Treasury Department announced sanctions relief, permitting American financial institutions to provide services to Syria and process payments involving Syrian banks, though restrictions on sanctioned entities remain in effect [1, 3, 4]. Alongside Syria's delisting, the U.S. also revoked the designation of al-Nusra Front/Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham as a Specially Designated Global Terrorist Organization [1, 3, 5, 4].

Since the 2024 ouster of Bashar al-Assad, the new Syrian government has been led by President Ahmed al-Sharaa, who previously led the rebel group Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham [1, 2, 6, 4]. Reflecting on the change, al-Sharaa said, “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” [1].

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the removal “eliminates the final major barriers for private sector investment in Syria and promotes Syria’s economic recovery and reintegration into the global economy,” giving the country a “path to prosperity” [1, 2, 3, 4]. The World Bank estimates Syria’s post-war reconstruction cost at more than $216 billion [2].

Several countries welcomed the decision. The Turkish Foreign Ministry stated the move removed “one of the major obstacles to Syria’s economic recovery and reconstruction” [7]. Jordan’s Foreign Ministry spokesman Fuad al-Majali called it “an important step toward supporting Syria’s reconstruction, recovery, and development” [5]. Qatar also expressed support [7, 5].

The US Treasury emphasized that delisting Syria does not alter its commitment to combating global terrorism and holding perpetrators accountable [2, 3].

The decision followed a 45-day congressional review triggered on July 8 when US President Donald Trump formally notified Congress of the intent to remove Syria from the terrorism list [6, 4]. Following the review, the removal was officially enacted on August 24, 2026 [1, 2, 3, 4]. On August 25, Syria, Türkiye, Qatar, and Jordan publicly welcomed the decision [7, 5].