UN lifts sanctions on Syria’s al-Sharaa ahead of Washington visit
Shafaq News – New York
The United Nations Security Council on Thursday approved a US-backed resolution removing Syrian transitional President Ahmad al-Sharaa and Interior Minister Anas Hasan Khattab from a decade-old sanctions list that had linked them to al-Qaeda-affiliated networks.
The resolution, adopted by 14 votes in favor with China abstaining, comes ahead of al-Sharaa’s planned visit to Washington on Monday — the first by a Syrian leader since the country’s independence in 1946.
US Ambassador to the UN Mike Waltz hailed the outcome as “a strong political signal that recognizes Syria is in a new era since [former president Bashar] al-Assad and his associates were toppled in December 2024.”
Chinese Ambassador Fu Cong explained Beijing’s abstention, saying the proposal did not fully address “the legitimate concerns of all parties regarding counterterrorism and security in Syria,” though he reaffirmed China’s support for the Syrian people.
Diplomatic sources told Shafaq News that the resolution passed by “a comfortable majority” after rounds of negotiations focused on “reassessing sanctions imposed since the outbreak of the Syrian conflict,” in light of shifting regional dynamics. While the decision covers only al-Sharaa and Khattab, they added, it could open the door to a broader review of UN measures on Syria as part of a new approach encouraging Damascus’s reintegration into its Arab and international environment.
Read more: Beyond Sanctions: New chapter for Syria, new opportunities for Iraq
In Damascus, the Foreign Ministry welcomed the vote as “a victory for Syrian diplomacy” and confirmation that the country “has regained its rightful status and pivotal regional role.”
بيان صادر عن وزارة الخارجية والمغتربين في الجمهورية العربية السورية pic.twitter.com/bg8dfS0H0d
— وزارة الخارجية والمغتربين السورية (@syrianmofaex) November 6, 2025
