US Removes Syria from Terrorism List, Paving the Way for Reconstruction and High-Stakes Peace Talks with Israel

Syria’s removal from a US terrorism list erases the last legal obstacle to rebuilding the ruins of the civil war, but, in parallel, it raises the pressure on President Ahmad Al Shara to strike a deal with Israel amid high-stakes security talks. The matter was discussed at length in Amman this week. Sources within the new government in Damascus revealed to The National details of Syrian-Israeli meetings held in recent days in the Jordanian capital in an attempt to defuse tensions and chart a way forward.

The decision of the US to officially remove Syria from its list of state sponsors of terrorism after 47 years had been expected since US President Donald Trump in July notified Congress of his intent to rescind the designation. “Treasury is following through on President Trump’s promise to give the Syrian people a chance at greatness,” said Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent on Monday. “Today’s action will help foster additional investment in Syria to promote political and economic stability.”

The US also revoked the designation of Al Nusra Front. The group formally severed ties with Al Qaeda in 2016 and later rebranded, merging into Hayat Tahrir Al Sham in 2017. Explicit in the US support for the post-Assad order has been an American expectation from Mr Al Shara to create a roadmap for a peace deal with Israel, ending the decades-long nominal state of war between the two countries. The feat would be politically extraordinary given the anti-American and anti-Israeli ideology that shaped Mr Al Shara's rise as a radical fighter.

“You have a leader of a Sunni Arab nation, someone who broke with extremist ideology, and is willing to make peace with Israel. His people are tired and want peace also,” said one of the Syrian sources, who recently met Tom Barrack, the high-profile US envoy to several Middle Eastern countries. President Trump has assigned him the task of forging a Syrian-Israeli peace.

The change in Damascus 18 months ago has been such a political bombshell that it has led to consternation among international powers still working out how to deal with the repercussions. Apart from the blow it dealt to the strategic position of Iran and Russia in the Levant, it has prompted an intensification of Israeli and Turkish rivalry in Syria. Turkey has become the most powerful regional backer of the post-Assad order in Damascus and a major influencer on its security policies, complicating Washington's drive to shape the new Syria.

The removal of the terrorism designation came a day after Israeli and Syrian officials discussed reviving a decades-old security deal at a US-brokered meeting in Amman. The meeting marked a breakthrough, coming after an escalation of Israeli attacks in Syria. US officials attended the meeting on Sunday in Jordan between Mossad chief Roman Gofman and Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad Al Shibani.

Sources connected with power centres in Syria revealed details of the meeting to The National, stating that Damascus renewed its demand for an Israeli withdrawal from Syrian territory, while also seeking to reassure Israel regarding the presence of Turkish or other forces in Syria. An impasse between Syria and Israel over the predominantly Druze governorate of Sweida, in southern Syria, was also raised at the talks.

A Syrian source briefed on the meeting said one potential confidence-building factor was that it was held in Amman. Jordan, which is allied with the US and has a peace treaty with Israel, also has a security relationship with Turkey and Syria, with US forces based in the kingdom under a defence pact. Another Syrian source noted that Damascus raised the issue of nine military posts established by Israel shortly after the December 2024 fall of Al Assad, which breached a 1974 armistice line near the occupied Golan Heights.

“Israel has no real problem withdrawing from these bases if there is a guarantee that the Syrian army would not move back in,” one of the sources said. However, Israel also wants political concessions, pointing to the US push for a formal peace between Syria and Israel. In January this year, Mr Barrack brokered a deal between Syria and Israel to share intelligence and explore commercial ties, though it has been undermined by increased Israeli attacks and incursions into Syria.

Regarding the Druze population of Sweida, a solution envisaged by Mr Barrack would be an integration deal under which Damascus would allow the appointment of former Druze foes into senior positions in the administration of Sweida and in local security forces. For Mr Al Shara, US support has become vital to his government's survival and growth as Syria embarks on a path of development and reconstruction.