The United States has removed Syria from its list of State Sponsors of Terrorism (SSOT), marking another major shift in Washington’s relationship with the country following the fall of the Bashar al-Assad regime in December 2024 at the end of a brutal 14-year civil war. US President Donald Trump had announced the planned removal in July, which had been in place since 1979. It took effect following a 45-day congressional review.
The US “terrorism” designation had triggered restrictions on foreign assistance, defence exports, certain financial transactions and the transfer of some dual-use goods – products which can have military uses, as well. It can also cause banks and companies to be wary of doing business with a country because of the legal and compliance risks involved. The removal of Syria leaves Cuba, Iran and North Korea as the only countries currently on the US “terrorism blacklist”.
Syria had been on the SSOT list since 1979, when the government of Hafez al-Assad was accused by Washington of supporting armed groups opposed to Israel. The designation continued when his son, Bashar al-Assad, assumed power in 2000 and lasted for the entirety of his rule, which came to an end when he was overthrown in a lightning strike on Damascus by rebel groups led by al-Sharaa in December 2024. Al-Assad and members of his family fled Syria and are currently under supervisory asylum in Moscow.
In July this year, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the decision to remove Syria from the list came following “formal assurances” from the Syrian president that the country will not “support acts of international terrorism in the future”. Washington has also praised cooperation between al-Sharaa’s government and the US against the ISIL (ISIS) armed group, which had, at various points, seized control of swaths of Syrian territory between 2013 and 2019, during the civil war. Al-Sharaa previously led the al-Nusra Front, an al-Qaeda affiliate, before breaking ties in 2016.
The “terrorism-sponsor” designation had remained a major obstacle for potential investors in Syria even after Washington dismantled its broader Syria sanctions programme in 2025. Rubio has said lifting the designation will “unlock international trade and investment” and give Syria a chance to rebuild. Sina Azodi, assistant professor of Middle East Politics at George Washington University, told Al Jazeera that being removed from the list brings “many benefits”.
The US continues to accuse Tehran of supporting armed groups across the region, including Hezbollah in Lebanon, Yemen’s Houthi group and a variety of groups in Iraq and Syria. The designation has led to the sanctioning of Iran’s government, financial system, military and oil industry. On Monday, the US announced sweeping new economic sanctions on Tehran and entities in other countries which the US says facilitate trade with it, in a bid to isolate the country from the global economy amid a diplomatic deadlock during the current US-Israeli war on Iran.
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