Latest news with #AlShara
The National
08-06-2025
- Politics
- The National
Israel says it struck Hamas member in Syria
Israel's military said on Sunday that it struck a member of Hamas in southern Syria's Mazraat Beit Jin, days after Israel carried out its first strikes on the country in almost a month. Hamas did not immediately comment on the strike. The attack comes after the Israeli army said on Tuesday that it hit weapons belonging to Syria's new government in retaliation for the launch of two projectiles towards Israel, the first attack from the Syrian side since the country's new leadership came to power last year. Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz said he held Syria's President Ahmad Al Shara responsible for the earlier attack, while Syria's government said reports of shelling aimed at Israel were unverified and stressed that Syria does not pose a threat. 'We believe that there are many parties that may seek to destabilise the region to achieve their own interests,' the Syrian Foreign Ministry said. A little-known group named the Martyr Muhammad Deif Brigades – an apparent reference to a Hamas military leader who was killed in an Israeli strike in 2024 – reportedly claimed responsibility for the previous shelling. Mr Al Shara, a former Al Qaeda affiliate, has sought to portray himself as a moderate leader over the past six months since he led a rebel offensive that toppled Syria's long-time dictator Bashar Al Assad. Israel and Syria have recently engaged in direct talks to calm tensions, marking a significant development in ties between two states that have been on opposing sides of conflicts in the Middle East for decades. The US has called for a 'non-aggression agreement'. Israel has nonetheless pushed further into southern Syria over the past six months and has waged a campaign of aerial bombardment. It has said the strikes are aimed at countering threats from Iran and its proxies, particularly Hezbollah. Syria and Israel have technically been at war since 1948. The most notable event in that time was when Israel seized the Golan Heights from Syria in 1967 and carried out hundreds of strikes and several incursions. Israel says its latest strikes are aimed at stopping advanced weapons reaching Syria's new authorities.
The National
05-06-2025
- General
- The National
Syria to give UN inspectors immediate access to suspected former nuclear sites
Syria has agreed to give inspectors from the International Atomic Energy Agency immediate access to suspected former nuclear sites, the group's director general has said. The UN nuclear watchdog aims to 'bring total clarity over certain activities that took place in the past that were, in the judgment of the agency, probably related to nuclear weapons", Rafael Grossi told the AP on Wednesday. He said the Syrian government, led by President Ahmad Al Shara, was 'committed to opening up to the world, to international co-operation', adding that he is hopeful of finishing the inspection process within the coming months. Mr Grossi's remarks came after he met Mr Al Shara and other officials in Damascus. Mr Grossi said the Syrian leader expressed an interest in pursuing nuclear energy for the country in the future, adding: 'Why not?' An IAEA team visited some sites of interest in 2024, while former president Bashar Al Assad was in power. Since the downfall of his regime in December, the IAEA has sought to secure access to sites associated with Syria's nuclear programme. Under Mr Al Assad, Syria was believed to have operated an extensive clandestine nuclear programme, which included an undeclared reactor built by North Korea in the eastern Deir Ezzor province. The IAEA said the reactor was 'not configured to produce electricity', raising concerns that Damascus sought to develop a nuclear weapon there. The reactor site only became public knowledge after Israel launched air strikes that destroyed the facility in 2007. Syria later levelled the site and did not respond fully to questions from the IAEA. Mr Grossi said inspectors planned to return to the reactor facility in Deir Ezzor, as well as to three other related sites. Other areas under IAEA safeguards include a miniature neutron source reactor in Damascus and a facility in Homs that can process yellow cake uranium. 'We are trying to narrow down the focus to those or that one that could be of a real interest,' he said. While he said there were no indications that radiation had been released from the sites, the agency is concerned that 'enriched uranium can be lying somewhere and could be reused, could be smuggled, could be trafficked". He said Mr Al Shara, who has courted western governments since taking power, had shown a 'very positive disposition to talk to us and to allow us to carry out the activities we need to". Apart from resuming inspections in Syria, Mr Grossi said the IAEA was prepared to transfer equipment for nuclear medicine and to help rebuild radiotherapy and oncology infrastructure in a healthcare system severely weakened by 14 years of civil war. 'And the President has expressed to me that he's interested in exploring, in the future, nuclear energy as well,' added Mr Grossi. Several countries in the Middle East, including Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Egypt and Jordan, are pursuing nuclear energy in some form. Mr Grossi said Syria was likely to look into small modular reactors, which are cheaper and easier to use than traditional large reactors.
The National
29-05-2025
- Business
- The National
US to remove Syria's terrorism designation, special envoy says
Washington will remove Syria's designation as a state sponsor of terrorism, a senior US diplomat said in Damascus on Thursday, clearing another major hurdle to the country's international rehabilitation. "President Trump will soon announce Syria's removal from the list,' Thomas Barrack, the US ambassador to Turkey, who was recently also appointed special envoy to Syria, said after a flag-raising ceremony at the US ambassador's residence in the Syrian capital. President Donald Trump's decision this month to remove US sanctions on Syria, followed by a meeting with Syrian President Ahmad Al Shara in Saudi Arabia, have dramatically improved the strategic position of the Hayat Tahrir Al Sham (HTS) government in Damascus. The US President's decision came with the urging of Turkey and Saudi Arabia, two major backers of Mr Al Shara, who also heads HTS, a group formerly affiliated with Al Qaeda. HTS led a rebel offensive that ended more than 50 years of Assad family rule in December. The EU followed suit and decided to remove its own sanctions on Syria's economy, while maintaining the individual sanctions imposed mostly on former dictator Bashar Al Assad and his associates. Mr Al Shara took over a fragmented country with a shambolic economy after nearly 14 years of civil war. American officials have said one of the main reasons for the decision to lift the sanctions was the desire to improve living conditions quickly enough to prevent another civil war. Washington imposed the terror designation on Syria in the late 1970s, when it was under the rule of Mr Al Assad's father Hafez Al Assad, over his support of militant groups in the Middle East. Flanked by Syrian Foreign Minister Ahmad Al Shibani, Mr Barrack raised the US flag on the grounds of the US ambassador's residence in Damascus. The move precedes the reopening of the US embassy, which Mr Trump has said is coming. During their meeting in Riyadh, he asked Mr Al Shara to join the Abraham Accords, which have established relations between Israel and several Arab states. Mr Barrack said Israel and Syria should start working towards a peace deal, starting with a non-aggression pact and delineation of their borders.
The National
24-05-2025
- Business
- The National
Erdogan backs lifting sanctions on Syria as he meets Al Shara
President Recep Tayyip Erdogan told President Ahmad Al Shara he welcomed US and EU decisions to lift sanctions on Syria during a surprise meeting between the two leaders in Istanbul on Saturday.. The Turkish President also said that "Israel's occupation and aggression in Syrian territory is unacceptable". He added that Ankara will continue to oppose Israel's actions. The Syrian leader has had a remarkable two weeks that included meeting US President Donald Trump in Riyadh. Mr Trump pledged to lift crippling economic sanctions on Syria at that meeting. On Friday, the US Treasury Department announced a general licence for Syria, providing immediate sanctions relief. The lifting of sanctions is seen as a key enabler for the new Syrian government and will support the country's reconstruction after a devastating civil war. The US licence, known as GL25, 'authorises transactions prohibited by the Syrian Sanctions Regulations, effectively lifting sanctions on Syria,' said the Treasury in a statement on Friday. 'As President Trump promised, the Treasury Department and the State Department are implementing authorisations to encourage new investment into Syria,' said Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent. 'Syria must also continue to work towards becoming a stable country that is at peace, and today's actions will hopefully put the country on a path to a bright, prosperous and stable future.' Secretary of State Marco Rubio also issued a 180-day waiver under the Caesar Act to ensure that sanctions do not obstruct investment, and to enable the provision of electricity, energy, water and sanitation and enable humanitarian efforts, he said. "Today's actions represent the first step in delivering on the President's vision of a new relationship between Syria and the United States," said Mr Rubio, adding that Mr Trump had made clear his expectation that sanctions relief would be followed by action by the Syrian government. Mr Trump unexpectedly announced last week that he would lift the sanctions at the behest of Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, a major US policy shift. The White House said after Mr Trump met Mr Al Shara in Riyadh that the US President asked Syria to adhere to several conditions in exchange for sanctions relief, including telling all foreign militants to leave the country, deporting what he called Palestinian terrorists and helping the US prevent the resurgence of ISIS. "President Trump is providing the Syrian government with the chance to promote peace and stability, both within Syria and in Syria's relations with its neighbours," said Mr Rubio. The waivers do not allow for transactions that benefit Russia, Iran or North Korea, and are intended to help rebuild Syria's economy, financial sector and infrastructure, in line with US foreign policy interests, according to the Treasury Department. Syria welcomed the sanctions waiver on Saturday. The Foreign Ministry called it a "positive step in the right direction to alleviate the country's humanitarian and economic suffering". Syria is keen on co-operating with other countries "on the basis of mutual respect and non-interference in internal affairs", the ministry said. "It believes that dialogue and diplomacy are the best path to building balanced relations." Most of the US sanctions against Syria were imposed on the government of Bashar Al Assad and his allies in 2011, after civil war erupted. Mr Al Shara led militias that overthrew Mr Al Assad's regime in December. The general licence names Mr Al Shara, formerly sanctioned under the name Abu Mohammed Al Jawlani, among the people and entities with whom transactions are now authorised. It also lists Syrian Arab Airlines, the Central Bank of Syria and several other banks, state oil and gas companies and the Four Seasons Damascus hotel. With additional reporting from Reuters
The National
14-05-2025
- Politics
- The National
Trump's visit a chance to bring peace to region, says Qatar Emir
Trump's visit to Doha to focus on economy and defence ties Trump meets Al Shara and urges Syrian leader to establish ties with Israel Saudi Crown Prince says GCC-US co-operation needed to end Gaza war Sheikh Khaled says US-GCC relations 'exceed usual horizons' at Riyadh summit Oman confident of 'practical' solution in US-Iran talks Trump told Middle East needs a Palestinian state
