Trump rebuffed Israeli request to keep some sanctions on Syria — report

Aides to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu asked US President Donald Trump to retain some American sanctions on Syria to be used as a bargaining chip in future negotiations, but the request was refused, the Kan public broadcaster reports.

The US Congress imposed the so-called Caesar Act sanctions on Syria’s government and financial system in 2019 to punish then-Syrian president Bashar Assad for human rights abuses during the country’s nearly 14-year civil war that began in 2011.

After Assad was ousted a year ago, advocates for repeal argued that the sanctions were preventing international investors from launching reconstruction projects and blocking Syria from rebuilding its battered economy and infrastructure.

Trump, who had previously lifted the penalties temporarily by executive order, signed off on the final repeal late Thursday after Congress passed it as part of the country’s annual defense spending bill.

Syria’s foreign ministry, in a statement yesterday, thanked the US for the repeal of sanctions and said it will “contribute to alleviating the burdens on the Syrian people and open the way for a new phase of recovery and stability.”

Kan reports that close contacts of Netanyahu placed heavy pressure on those in the Trump administration who were responsible for the Syria file to maintain some of the sanctions. Officials they appealed to reportedly included US Ambassador to Turkey and special envoy to Syria Tom Barrack, special envoy Steve Witkoff, and Jared Kushner, the US president’s son-in-law.

The outlet reported that the Trump administration promised Israel unspecified “compensation” for lifting the sanctions. Trump has expressed hope for a diplomatic accord between Israel and Syria.