The United States has removed Syria from its list of “State Sponsors of Terrorism”, a decision Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa hailed as “historic” and said would help the country’s recovery after 14 years of civil war, Al Jazeera reports.
The removal on Monday took effect after a 45-day congressional review period, triggered when US President Donald Trump formally notified Congress on July 8 of his intention to rescind the decades-old designation.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said in a statement that the action was “taken in recognition of the positive actions taken and further commitments” by al-Sharaa to “fully distance Syria from acts of international terrorism”.
Al-Sharaa welcomed the decision in a statement on X.
He thanked Trump and said Syria was tearing a “page from its painful past, in order to launch itself into the realm of development, reconstruction, and building”.
Syria had been on the list since 1979, when Washington accused the government of former President Hafez al-Assad of supporting armed groups. The designation remained throughout the rule of his son, Bashar al-Assad, who was toppled by rebels led by al-Sharaa in December 2024.
The designation carries restrictions on US foreign assistance, defence exports and sales, certain dual-use items (which can have civilian and military applications) and financial transactions. It had remained a major deterrent for banks and investors even after Washington dismantled its broader sanctions programme on Syria.
