Canada removes Syria from terror list, drops HTS designation as sanctions ease

Canada on Friday removed Syria from its list of states that support terrorism, and revoked Hayat Tahrir al-Sham’s (HTS) designation as a “terrorist entity,” joining a list of countries to ease sanctions on Damascus.

The moves come after HTS ousted former Syrian leader Bashar al-Assad last December and took control of the government.

“These decisions were not taken lightly,” Canada’s foreign ministry said in a statement.

The steps were “in line with recent decisions taken by our allies, including the United Kingdom and the United States, and follow the efforts by the Syrian transitional government to advance Syria’s stability,” it said.

Canada listed Syria as a “state supporter of terrorism” in 2012, as Assad’s crushing of pro-democracy protests plunged the country into civil war.

HTS had been widely sanctioned over its links to Al-Qaeda, but several Western states have delisted the group to allow for better collaboration with the new Syrian government and its president, the former jihadist Ahmed al-Sharaa.

Since taking power, Syria’s new leaders have sought to break from their violent past and present a more moderate image to ordinary Syrians and foreign powers.

Canada is maintaining sanctions on 56 Syrian individuals, including former officials from the fallen Assad regime and members of the Assad family, the foreign ministry said.

(Except the headline, this story has not been edited by Firstpost staff.)