A UN envoy called on Sunday for a quick end to Western sanctions against Syria As the country’s new leaders and regional and global powers begin to chart a path forward, they are following suit Overthrow of President Bashar al-Assad.
The Syrian government has therefore been under strict sanctions from the USA, the European Union and others for years Assad’s brutal response There were peaceful anti-government protests in 2011, which later turned into a civil war.
The Rebel alliance The country that toppled Assad just days ago, breaking his iron rule over the country, faces a country rocked and deeply isolated by tough international sanctions that have exacerbated Syria’s previous economic problems. But other challenges are also complicating Syria’s reconstruction: the new interim leadership has not laid out a clear vision of how the country should be governed, and the main group behind the offensive is struggling Classification as a terrorist by the USA.
U.N. envoy for Syria Geir Pedersen told reporters in Damascus that a rapid easing of sanctions would help put Syria back on track after recent turbulent weeks.
“Hopefully we can see a quick end to sanctions so we can really see a rally for building Syria,” he said.
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Parts of Syria’s largest cities remain damaged or destroyed from years of fighting. Reconstruction was largely hampered by sanctions aimed at preventing the reconstruction of damaged infrastructure and property in government-controlled areas unless there was a political solution.
Pedersen traveled to Damascus to meet with officials of the new interim government installed by the former opposition forces that toppled Assad and led by the Islamist militant group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS). Officials in Washington have indicated that the Biden administration is considering removing the group’s terror designation. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said this on Saturday Officials were in direct contact with the group.
Over the weekend, Blinken attended an emergency meeting in Jordan where he said he had received the support of the 12 foreign ministers of the Arab League, Turkey and senior officials from the European Union and the United Nations on the issue of how Syria will respond after decades of Assad -Family run should rule.
They agreed that the new government should respect the rights of minorities and women, prevent terrorist groups from asserting themselves, ensure humanitarian aid reaches those in need and secure and destroy any remaining Assad-era chemical weapons. Blinken has promised that the United States would recognize and support a new administration that conforms to these principles.
A readout from President Biden’s virtual call with G7 leaders said they discussed “the need for a Syrian-led and Syrian-owned political transition process,” among other issues in the Middle East.
As the Biden administration’s time runs out, it is not clear what approach President-elect Donald Trump will take in Syria.
Syria’s interim government is due to rule until March, but has not yet made clear the process by which it will be replaced by a new permanent government.
“We have to get the political process going that includes all Syrians,” Pedersen said. “This process must of course be led by the Syrians themselves.”
He called for “justice and accountability for the crimes committed during the war” and urged the international community to increase humanitarian assistance.
In a sign of Syrians’ longing for a return to normality, schools in Damascus reopened on Sunday for the first time since the insurgents’ march on the capital, even after the stormy rebel offensive of recent weeks.
At the Nahla Zaidan school in the capital’s Mezzah district, teachers raised the three-star revolutionary flag instead of the two-star Syrian flag of the former government.
“Syria is trying to build this country with the children who have come. Although I think some of them are afraid, they came to build Syria and live the victories of this country,” said Maysoun Al-Ali, director of the school.
“God willing, there will be more development, more security and more construction in this beloved country.”
