US to remove Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham from terror list

Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), the group that overthrew the Bashar al-Assad government in Syria and established a transitional government in Damascus, is set to be removed from the US list of foreign terrorist organizations despite its past connections to al-Qaeda and the al-Nusra Front. According to an internal US State Department memo, this decision was made concurrently with President Donald Trump’s lifting of sanctions against Syria.

The memo, signed by US Secretary of State Marco Rubio on June 23 and formalized on July 7, stated that “following consultations with the Departments of Justice and Treasury, the al-Nusra Front, also known as Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham, will be removed from the list of foreign terrorist organizations.”

Established in 2012 as al-Qaeda’s Syrian branch, the al-Nusra Front later changed its name to HTS in an effort to evade US sanctions. Anti-Assad operations conducted by the Pentagon and CIA, which utilized al-Qaeda-like sectarian groups, plunged Syria into a 14-year proxy war that began in 2011.

The anti-Assad front, supported by countries including the US, Israel, the United Kingdom, France, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, and Türkiye, achieved its objectives on the ground on December 8, 2024, when jihadist groups led by HTS seized control of Damascus.

Al-Shara declared interim President as Trump lifts sanctions

HTS leader Ahmed al-Shara, also known as Abu Mohammad al-Jolani, for whom the US had placed a bounty, declared himself interim president after taking control of Damascus. Following this development, the Western world began to ease the sanctions that were imposed during the Assad era.

Despite documented sectarian massacres in March, where groups affiliated with HTS killed over 1,600 civilians in coastal cities with large Alawite populations, US President Donald Trump announced his intention to lift sanctions during a visit to Riyadh, the capital of Saudi Arabia, in May. He met with HTS leader Ahmed al-Shara during the same visit.

Last week, Trump signed a presidential decree lifting sanctions on Syria. A White House statement claimed that this step “aims to support the path to stability and peace.”

US demands normalization with Israel and distance from Palestinian resistance

In exchange for lifting the sanctions, the US administration has made several demands of the new Syrian government. These demands include normalizing relations with Israel, severing ties with “foreign terrorists”—referring to Iran-linked groups—and banning Palestinian resistance organizations.