The U.S. Reduces Aid Restrictions to Syria, Sanctions Remain

The Biden administration, in an act considered a "goodwill gesture" towards the new rulers of Damascus, is reducing restrictions related to humanitarian aid and essential services to Syria while maintaining sanctions against the country. Reuters reported on Sunday, January 6, citing "informed sources," that the aim of these actions is to pave the way for improving living conditions in the war-torn country while keeping the pressure of sanctions from the United States. According to Reuters, following the fall of the decades-long regime of Bashar al-Assad and the rise of a temporary government affiliated with the "Hay'at Tahrir al-Sham," officials from the Washington government have met several times with members of the new government. A delegation from the U.S. State Department, led by Barbara Leaf, met with Ahmad al-Shara, the leader of Tahrir al-Sham, in Damascus during the early days of the new government and subsequently announced that it had revoked the ten million dollar reward that Washington had set for the commander of "Hay'at Tahrir al-Sham" a decade ago. However, according to Reuters, the United States still designates this group, which has abandoned its previous ties with al-Qaeda and fought against it, as a terrorist organization. The Syrian Foreign Minister called for the lifting of U.S. sanctions in Qatar. Washington seeks cooperation from "Hay'at Tahrir al-Sham" in priority areas such as combating terrorism and forming a government that represents all Syrian people and guarantees the rights of religious and ethnic minorities and women in the country. The Wall Street Journal reported that the Biden administration agreed over the weekend to reduce restrictions related to aid to Syria and announced that this step allows the Treasury Department to grant exemptions to groups and companies that provide essential needs for people such as water, electricity, and other humanitarian services. A spokesperson for the U.S. Treasury, the department that oversees and enforces sanctions on Syria, did not respond to Reuters' report; it neither confirmed nor denied it. According to the Wall Street Journal, the Biden administration's decision to keep sanctions against Syria indicates that the White House still has concerns until the path of the new Syrian leaders becomes clearer. Officials from the temporary Damascus government have stated that the sanctions are against Bashar al-Assad's regime and have called on the international community to lift them. The foreign minister of the temporary government called for the lifting of U.S. sanctions during a visit to Qatar on Sunday. U.S. and EU sanctions followed the Syrian civil war, which killed thousands, including in bombings suspected of using chemical weapons. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported last week that there are documents related to the deaths of over 528,000 people in a summary of the events of the civil war. The U.S. sanctions known as "Caesar" were enacted based on a law passed in Congress after a photographer from Syria, nicknamed "Caesar," leaked numerous images of killed and tortured prisoners from prisons like Sednaya over the past decade. The foreign ministers of France and Germany, who met with Ahmad al-Shara in Damascus in recent days, have stated that the lifting of EU sanctions against Syria depends on the direction that the newly empowered rulers of the country take in terms of political guarantees of freedoms and democracy.