The United States has taken Syria off its list of state sponsors of terrorism after 47 years, a step Washington billed as clearing the last major barrier to private investment and Damascus treated, into Tuesday, as a historic break with isolation.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Monday’s decision recognized “positive actions” and further commitments by President Ahmed al-Sharaa’s government to distance Syria from international terrorism. Rubio said it “eliminates the final major barriers for private sector investment in Syria” and gives Syrians “a path to prosperity.” Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said the move would help foster investment and political and economic stability, in line with President Donald Trump’s promise of sanctions relief. The designation, in place since 1979, carried restrictions on U.S. aid, defense sales, dual-use goods and financial transactions. It had remained a deterrent for banks even after Washington dismantled much of its broader Syria sanctions program.
Washington also revoked the remaining U.S. terrorist designation of Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, the Islamist group formerly known as the al-Nusra Front. HTS, once al-Qaeda’s affiliate in Syria, broke with that network in 2016 and led the late-2024 offensive that toppled Bashar al-Assad. Sharaa, its former leader, now heads the transitional government. He once carried an American bounty. The Trump administration has embraced him, including a White House visit last year, as part of an effort to pull Syria away from Russia and Iran. Cuba, North Korea and Iran are now the only countries left on the state sponsors list.
The delisting took effect after a 45-day congressional review that began when Trump notified Congress on July 8. Syrian officials spent Tuesday talking as if a door had opened. Sharaa said Syria was shaking off “a dark stain” and tearing away “a painful chapter of its past.” Foreign Minister Asaad Hassan al-Shaibani called it a historic step and said the old designation was “associated with the policies and practices of the former regime.” Turkey and Saudi Arabia both welcomed the decision, with Ankara calling it one of the biggest obstacles to reconstruction.
The risks are still obvious. Syria is far from secure, lacks a representative government, and sits in the middle of growing tension between Israel and Turkey. The Treasury stressed that lifting the listing does not change its posture on countering terrorism or holding bad actors in Syria accountable. Whether banks and investors actually come back will depend on what happens next, not just on a line disappearing from a U.S. list.