Syrian president welcomes lifting of US sanctions

Syrian President Ahmad al-Sharaa on Friday welcomed the lifting of remaining US economic sanctions, celebrating the moment as a turning point after years of hardship under the rule of long-term dictator Bashar al-Assad.

US President Donald Trump signed a law late on Thursday repealing the 2019 sanctions known as the Caesar Act, US media reported.

Washington began gradually rolling back sanctions on Syria earlier this year following al-Assad's ouster in December 2024.

In an address to the nation delivered from Mount Qasioun overlooking Damascus, al-Sharaa marked "the first day Syria lives without sanctions," and thanked Trump and the US Congress for recognizing Syria's suffering.

"Today is your day, great Syrian people," al-Sharaa said. "The era of pain has ended, and the era of rebuilding has begun. Together, hand in hand, we will rebuild this nation."

The Syrian president, a former Islamist rebel commander who led the rebel alliance that toppled al-Assad, paid tribute to those who suffered during the country's nearly 14 years of civil war, including those killed, displaced and disappeared.

Al-Sharaa also thanked Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, and Qatari Emir Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, in addition to Arab and European countries that he said supported Syria and contributed to the easing of sanctions over the past year.