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US to ease aid restrictions for Syria while keeping sanctions in place

January 6, 2025 at 8:56 am

People gather the mosque and its surroundings with “Syrian revolution flag” and chant slogans calling for the country’s freedom and a “new Syria” after performing the first Friday prayer at the Umayyad Mosque following the collapse of the 61-year-long Baath regime in Syria and the end of the Assad family’s rule in Damascus, Syria, on December 13, 2024. [Emin Sansar – Anadolu Agency]

The US is set to announce an easing of restrictions on providing humanitarian aid and other basic services such as electricity to Syria while still keeping its strict sanctions regime in place, according to people briefed on the matter, Reuters has reported.

The decision by the outgoing Biden administration will send a goodwill signal to Syria’s new rulers and aims to pave the way for improving tough living conditions in the war-ravaged country while also treading cautiously and keeping US leverage in place.

US officials have met several times with members of the ruling administration since the dramatic end on 8 December of more than 50 years of Assad family rule. The lightning opposition offensive against the Assad regime was led by former Al-Qaeda affiliate Hay’at Tahrir Al-Sham (HTS).

The group has long-since renounced its former Al-Qaeda ties and fought against it, but remains designated as a terrorist entity by the US. Washington wants to see HTS cooperate on priorities such as counterterrorism and forming a government inclusive of all Syrians.

The Wall Street Journal reported that the Biden administration approved the easing of restrictions over the weekend, saying that the move authorises the Treasury Department to issue waivers to aid groups and companies providing essentials such as water, electricity and other humanitarian supplies.

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