New Delhi: The United States on Tuesday officially revoked the designation of Ahmed al-Sharaa-led Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) as a Foreign Terrorist Organisation (FTO). The decision has come amid a broader U.S. effort to re-engage with post-war Syria since the HTS toppled the Bashar al-Assad regime last year.
For years, HTS, founded by Ahmed al-Sharaa as the official Syrian al-Qaeda affiliate and initially named Jabhat al-Nusra, was considered a jihadist group and accused of atrocities and harbouring extremists. Now, with HTS leader installed as the Syrian president, the U.S. and European powers are shifting their course.
The revocation of the terrorist designation is part of what the U.S. officials are describing as a “new chapter” for Syria.
“This FTO revocation is an important step in fulfilling President Trump’s vision of a stable, unified, and peaceful Syria,” Secretary of State Marco Rubio said in a statement.
The Biden and Trump administrations have previously been wary of any normalisation with the HTS till it allegedly cut ties with the global jihadist network in 2016 and, over time, reinvented itself as a nationalist movement focused on Syrian governance.
The U.S. decision opens doors for diplomatic recognition, humanitarian aid, and direct reconstruction support to flow into HTS-controlled parts of Syria for the first time in years.
The FTO delisting, however, does not mean the HTS is off the hook. The group and Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa himself remain sanctioned by the United Nations Security Council. The terrorist designation of HTS in the UNSC can only go through a vote, where global powers such as Russia and China hold veto powers.
Despite that, the move signals a transformation in the political standing of the HTS since its military takeover of Syria from Assad, mainly by exploiting the weakened allies of the ex-president and coordinating with dissidents and opposition groups.
Conversely, since Assad is no longer in Syria, the regional influence of the countries considered his allies, such as Russia and Iran, has likely lessened, with the Western powers expected to play a bigger role in everything concerning Syria.
Shifting diplomacy
An armed coalition led by Ahmed al-Sharaa toppled Syrian President Bashar al-Assad last year, bringing an end to more than 50 years of rule by the Assad family.
Currently, Syria faces numerous challenges, both domestically and regionally. Israel has invaded areas within Syria, conducted hundreds of airstrikes, and continues to occupy hundreds of square kilometres of Syrian land.
Since assuming the role of president, Ahmed al-Sharaa has overseen a dramatic political shift in Syria, drawing cautious but growing acceptance from Washington, D.C., Europe, and even Israel, now exploring diplomatic engagement with Damascus for the first time in decades.
In June, Netanyahu expressed interest in normalising relations with both Syria and Lebanon, as part of an expansion of the so-called “Abraham Accords”, according to reports.
The U.S. decision to formally revoke the terrorist designation of HTS—which took effect Tuesday—followed President Donald Trump’s move to lift most American sanctions on Syria. The policy reversal on sanctions, announced in May, came after lobbying by the regional allies of the U.S., Saudi Arabia and Turkey, who advocated for Syria’s reintegration into the global economy. By then, Washington, D.C., had already withdrawn the reward it once offered for Ahmed al-Sharaa’s capture.
On 4 July, Syrian officials announced a willingness to work with the U.S. to revive the 1974 disengagement agreement with Israel that established a U.N.-monitored buffer zone, separating the military forces of the two countries, signalling further efforts at international normalisation.
Since al-Sharaa took power, Western countries have steadily moved to reestablish relations with Syria. On 5 July, the United Kingdom restored diplomatic ties for the first time in over a decade, lifting sanctions on several key Syrian ministries and institutions, including the ministries of defence and interior, intelligence services, media outlets, and parts of the economy.
UK Foreign Secretary David Lammy became the first British government minister to visit Syria in 14 years. During his trip, he met with al-Sharaa and announced a new £94.5 million aid package to support long-term recovery efforts and assist neighbouring countries hosting Syrian refugees.
Ahmed al-Sharaa also met French President Emmanuel Macron in Paris in May, while several other foreign diplomats, including Ukraine’s foreign minister, have also made visits to Syria.
The rapid transformation from an internationally wanted militant to a key political actor courted by world leaders is perhaps one of the most striking political turnarounds in recent West Asian history.
Terrorist group or not?
HTS began consolidating control over the Idlib province in 2017 and built a parallel civil administration there, though not without controversy. The group was accused of harsh crackdowns on dissent and human rights abuses in its early governing years.
Formed in 2017 through the merger of several Islamist rebel factions, Jabhat al-Nusra, renamed HTS, was led by Abu Mohammad al-Jolani, renamed Ahmed al-Sharaa. A veteran of the Iraqi insurgency, al-Jolani became the commander of Jabhat al-Nusra.
The group was designated a terrorist organisation by the U.S. in 2018 due to its affiliation with al-Qaeda, its extremist ideology, and a history of engaging in violent tactics, including suicide bombings, kidnappings, and extrajudicial killings.
Though HTS formally severed ties with al-Qaeda in 2016, U.S. officials viewed that split as cosmetic and a strategic move to rebrand, without fundamentally changing.
Since 2020, HTS has allegedly waged an internal campaign against extremist groups and killed top ISIS leaders in clashes. It is said to have curbed the power of religious hardliners and attempted to build institutions of governance through a civilian-led administrative body, the Syrian Salvation Government.
After Assad’s fall in December, the new Syrian authorities formally disbanded all armed factions, inducting fighters from HTS and other groups into new state institutions, such as the national police and army.
However, HTS still operates in a volatile environment, with its power base in Idlib under constant threat from Assad regime loyalists, Russian airstrikes, and splinter jihadist groups. The risk remains that the group, under pressure, could revert to its militant roots.
In recent months, there has been a surge in violent attacks targeting minority communities across Syria. Hundreds of Alawite civilians were killed in Syria’s coastal provinces during clashes between new security forces created by HTS and Assad loyalists. Primarily, the government-aligned militias and forces carried out the killings. Security personnel, after coming under attack by Assad loyalists, carried out retaliatory massacres against Alawite civilians, raising questions about the al-Sharaa government.
April saw deadly confrontations involving Islamist armed groups, government security forces, and fighters from the Druze community. In June, a suicide bombing at a church in Damascus claimed at least 25 lives.
(Edited by Madhurita Goswami)
Also Read: Hayat Tahrir al-Sham’s rise in Syria concerns everyone. It’s the era of indivisible security