The U.S. Works to Lift Caesar Sanctions on Syria Following the Fall of Assad's Regime

SadaNews - Reports indicate that the United States is preparing to lift a set of stringent sanctions imposed on Syria during the presidency of the ousted Bashar al-Assad, with the repeal of these sanctions included in the comprehensive National Defense Authorization Act, which is expected to be voted on by Congress in the coming days.

This development comes as U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio and several members of Congress affirmed their support for Syria and its people on the occasion of the first anniversary of the "Liberation Day" and the fall of the Assad regime.

The Senate Foreign Relations Committee also issued a similar statement reaffirming its support for lifting the Caesar sanctions and continuing efforts for the prosperity of the Syrian people.

According to Reuters, both the House and Senate have included a provision to repeal the "Caesar" sanctions in the compromise version of the National Defense Authorization Act, a massive annual defense policy bill extending over 3,000 pages.

The new provision requires the White House to provide periodic reports proving that the Syrian government is fighting the "ISIS," maintaining minority rights, and not taking unilateral and unjustified military actions against its neighbors, including Israel.

The bill is expected to be approved before the end of the year, to be signed by U.S. President Donald Trump, amid Republican control of the majority in both the House and Senate and the committees responsible for its drafting.

This comes after Trump announced earlier his intention to lift all sanctions on Syria during his meeting with President Ahmad al-Shara in May of last year, where the sanctions were temporarily suspended, while the final lifting of the Caesar sanctions requires a new law from Congress.

U.S. sanctions, led by the Caesar Act of 2019, are a significant obstacle to the recovery of the Syrian economy, as they targeted individuals, companies, and institutions linked to the Assad regime, which ruled the country from 2000 until its ousting in 2024.

The law carries the name "Caesar," referring to the Syrian military photographer who leaked thousands of images documenting torture crimes and abuses in Assad's prisons.