Following a decade-and-a-half of a Washington-led full economic siege of the Syrian state, and after a fierce CIA-backed proxy war (Timber Sycamore) to oust Assad over that same period, this week has witnessed the huge milestone of the United States finally removing Syria from its state sponsors of terrorism list.
The designation itself had stretched back several decades, and it placed major hurdles in the way of international investment, but with the Monday move by the State Department many of the related sanctions have now been eased.
Jabat Al-Nusra, including the current US-backed President of Syria (center). Via Orient News TV/EPA"Today’s action will help foster additional investment in Syria to promote political and economic stability," Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said, signaling new US efforts to help the war-ravaged country recover.
Of course, this came only after it was 'mission accomplished' in terms of overthrowing the secular Ba'ath government of Bashar al-Assad. He fled the country in December 2024, as Jolani's al-Qaeda linked militant group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham entered Damascus, and since then there have been widespread reports of an 'Islamization' of the capital and various other cities and towns. The first year of Jolani's rule witnessed thousands of religious minorities kidnapped or slaughtered - with Alawites and Druze particularly targeted, but also many Christians.
The whole population was brought to its knees by the long-running sanctions, resulting in runaway inflation and
