Trump Lifts Syria Sanctions in Bid to Boost New Government
People celebrate in Damascus' Omeyyad square after US President Donald Trump's decision to lift sanctions in Syria, on May 13.
Photographer: Bakr Alkasem/AFP/Getty ImagesPresident Donald Trump signed an executive order terminating American sanctions on Syria, aiming to boost the Arab nation’s battered economy and support the new government after rebels overthrew the regime of Bashar Al-Assad last year.
The order removes various sanctions on Syria effective July 1 while keeping those on Assad, “his associates, human rights abusers, drug traffickers, persons linked to chemical weapons activities, ISIS or its affiliates, and Iranian proxies,” according to the White House.