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Washington Post
04-07-2025
- Politics
- Washington Post
With only six Jews left in Syria, émigrés now have a chance to return
BEIRUT — Henry Hamra vividly recalls the day he was allowed to leave Syria. His uncle, the Jewish community's rabbi, was called in for a meeting with Syria's president at the time, Hafez al-Assad. 'He told him, 'You could go anywhere in the world except Israel,'' recalled Hamra, who was only 15 at the time. Assad had decided to lift a decades-old travel ban on the Jewish population, and soon the Hamras and thousands of others left the country. At the time, Hamra thought he would never return. But today, he is leading efforts to rebuild and renovate Jewish religious sites after the Assad regime fell in December and most American sanctions were lifted in May. Jews have lived in Syria for more than a millennium and have a rich history there. Their numbers, however, dwindled to only six people due to years of hostility. Now, those who left can finally go back, if just for a visit. Hamra, like many Syrians living in the United States, was glued to his television the night that more than 50 years of Assad family rule came to an end. He said he immediately started making plans to return and with the help of Mouaz Moustafa, executive director of the D.C.-based Syrian Emergency Task Force, was able to go back with his father and others in February to meet with Syria's new rulers. 'It was very emotional to come back after 33 years,' said Hamra. On his first night, he sneaked out of his hotel without government-assigned escorts. 'I took a taxi and I went right next to my house, right next to the synagogue. I was just walking in the dark.' he recounted. His joy quickly soured after he and his father, Rabbi Yusef Hamra, visited Syria's ancient Jobar Synagogue. 'It was demolished. The whole synagogue was demolished. There's nothing Jewish there,' said the younger Hamra. Photographs reviewed by The Washington Post show rubble strewn across the site, though a few walls are intact and one archway survives with a Star of David carved on the capstone. Following his first visit, Hamra began lobbying the U.S. State Department for a sanctions waiver to rebuild the synagogue. The Caesar Act, passed by Congress in 2019, prevents outside financing of reconstruction in Syria. For a while, it appeared that a waiver would not be forthcoming, but that changed in May when President Donald Trump granted a 180-day waiver, paving the way for the community to proceed with rebuilding. Congress is now expected to consider repealing the law altogether. 'It's a start for Syria for sure, and it's a great help for us to start rebuilding the synagogue,' said Hamra. The process, he said, will be daunting as the site is littered with unexploded ordnances. What was once a bustling community of merchants, religious figures and politicians is now just six residents in Damascus, says Bakhour Chamantoub, 75, the head of the Jewish community. 'Only four men and [two] women remain, most of them are old in their eighties and nineties,' he said. Despite the restrictions and antisemitism, Chamantoub said he never left Syria and lived openly in Damascus. 'I was not scared of the Palestine Branch or anyone else,' he said, referring to the notorious Damascus prison. 'I am a Jew, and I am proud.' Jews have lived in Syria since biblical times, mainly in Damascus and the northern city of Aleppo, but also in the northeastern city of Qamishli, where Kurdish Jews resided. In its heyday, the community numbered between 25,000 to 30,000, said Joel Veldkamp, editor of the Syrian Studies Association Bulletin. He noted that the local community had a long history of welcoming Jews from abroad, including those fleeing the Spanish Inquisition, as well as Italian Jews who moved to Syria in the 18th century. 'The community ran hospitals, schools and orphanages. Aleppo was a center for religious studies for Jews,' he said. He added that an Aleppo synagogue housed one of the oldest copies of the Old Testament, known as the Aleppo codex. After the United Nations partitioned British Mandate Palestine in 1947 creating Israel and the ensuing Arab-Israeli wars, Syrian Jews became targets of mob attacks. The synagogue where Hamra's maternal grandfather was a cantor was bombed in 1949. Successive Syrian governments ignored the attacks and even took aggressive measures against the Jewish community, said Jason Guberman, executive director of the American Sephardi Federation. Both Hamra and Chamantoub recalled they were not allowed to leave the Jewish quarter in Damascus. 'It was a travel ban within a travel ban,' said Chamantoub. Guberman said Jewish leaders and entire neighborhoods were surveilled, correspondence was monitored and censored, restrictions were placed on employment and the teaching of Modern Hebrew was banned. A turning point came in April 1992 when then-President Hafez al-Assad lifted the travel ban, allowing the remaining 4,500 Jews to leave the country. A report by The Washington Post at the time noted that nearly 700 Jews had left a few months after the ban was lifted, reducing one kosher butcher's business by a third. Chamantoub said only 30 Jews remained after that and the number gradually declined to 15 by the start of the Syrian Civil War nearly 14 years ago. Hamra and his family were among those who moved to Brooklyn, 'We packed up everything and we left our house.' The move was hard on his family, which had to quickly adjust to their new surroundings. Henry said he had to drop out of school to support his family. Immigration to the U.S. was made easier by earlier generations of Jewish émigrés who supported new arrivals, said Guberman. Many had started to emigrate in the late 19th century to avoid Ottoman military conscription, a declining economy and antisemitic attacks. Those who could not make it to the U.S. settled in Mexico. David Luna 27, whose great-grandparents came from Aleppo, said that his mother still cooks Syrian dishes for the Sabbath. 'A lot of Syrian families here instead of doing Shabbat dinner, they do Shabbat lunch which revolves around all the different Kibbes,' he said. He too was following the news closely on Dec. 8, when rebels stormed into Damascus. 'I remember calling my mom after and feeling like, 'Hey mom, maybe we can finally go,'' he said. Despite positive overtures from Syria's new rulers, the community still faces challenges. In late April, the tomb of a revered Syrian rabbi, Hayyim ben Joseph Vital, was dug up by unknown culprits. Moustafa said officials have vowed to investigate the matter. Chamantoub said the new government has prevented squatters from moving into vacant Jewish homes after he complained but that some still remain occupied. Hamra said his family home is one of these. The Syrian Foreign Ministry did not respond to requests for comment. Few Syrian Jewish émigrés are planning to move back permanently but like Hamra, some are planning to visit. 'I was dreaming about this day,' he said. 'It was my dream to see my home again, to see my school and my synagogue. It was a dream come true.'
Asharq Al-Awsat
24-05-2025
- Business
- Asharq Al-Awsat
Trump Administration Takes First Steps in Easing Sanctions on Syria
The Trump administration granted Syria sweeping exemptions from sanctions Friday in a big first step toward fulfilling the president's pledge to lift a half-century of penalties on a country shattered by 13 years of civil war. While broad, the administration's actions could possibly be reversed. Syrians say they need permanent relief to secure the tens of billions of dollars in investment needed to rebuild after a conflict that fragmented the country, displaced or killed millions of people, and left behind thousands of foreign fighters. A measure by the State Department waived for six months a tough set of sanctions imposed by Congress in 2019. A Treasury Department action suspended enforcement of sanctions against anyone doing business with a range of Syrian individuals and entities, including Syria's central bank. Syria is now led by Ahmed al-Sharaa, whose opposition faction helped drive longtime autocratic leader Bashar al-Assad from power late last year. President Donald Trump announced last week that the US would roll back the heavy financial penalties in a bid to give the interim government a better chance of survival. The Trump administration said businesses and investors are getting the protection against sanctions they need to come back to Syria, calling it "the opportunity for a fresh start." "The only other option was Syria becoming a failed state and civil war," said Mouaz Moustafa, a Syrian American advocate who had campaigned for quick, broad relief. "Now there is hope for a future democratic Syria." The congressional sanctions, known as the Caesar Syria Civilian Protection Act, had aimed to isolate Syria's previous rulers by effectively expelling those doing business with them from the global financial system. They specifically block postwar reconstruction, so while they can be waived for 180 days by executive order, investors are likely to be wary of reconstruction projects when sanctions could be reinstated after six months. The Trump administration said Friday's actions were "just one part of a broader US government effort to remove the full architecture of sanctions." Those penalties had been imposed on the Assad family for their support of Iranian-backed militias, their chemical weapons program and abuses of civilians. Trump administration says it expects action from Syria Secretary of State Marco Rubio said in a statement Friday that in return for sanctions relief, Trump expects "prompt action by the Syrian government on important policy priorities." If Sharaa's government fails, the US and others fear renewed conflict in Syria and a power vacuum that could allow a resurgence of ISIS and other extremist groups. "If we engage them, it may work out, it may not work out. If we do not engage them, it was guaranteed to not work out," Rubio told lawmakers this week. Trump met Sharaa last week in Saudi Arabia, a day after announcing his intention to lift the sanctions: "We're taking them all off. Good luck, Syria. Show us something special." Rubio said sanctions relief must start quickly because Syria's transition government could be weeks from "collapse and a full-scale civil war of epic proportions." But asked by lawmakers this week what sanctions relief should look like overall, Rubio gave a one-word explanation: "Incremental." Permanent sanctions relief While some sanctions can be quickly waived through executive actions like those taken Friday, Congress would have to permanently remove the penalties it imposed. A proposal circulated among administration officials this week broadly emphasized taking all action possible, as fast as possible, according to US officials familiar with the plan who were not authorized to comment publicly and spoke on condition of anonymity. Last week, a State Department proposal laid out a three-phase roadmap with temporary, partial relief initially and setting sweeping conditions for Syrians to meet for any future phases of relief or permanent lifting of sanctions, one of the officials said. Removing "Palestinian terror groups" from Syria is first on the list of conditions to get to the second phase. Supporters of sanctions relief say that might be impossible, given the subjectivity of determining which groups meet that definition and at what point they can be declared removed. Other conditions for moving to the second phase are for the new government to take custody of detention facilities housing ISIS fighters and to move forward on absorbing a US-backed Kurdish force into the Syrian army. To get to phase three, Syria would be required to join the Abraham Accords — normalized relations with Israel — and to prove that it had destroyed the previous government's chemical weapons. Israel has been suspicious of the new government, although Syrian officials have said publicly that they do not want a conflict with Israel. Since Assad fell, Israel has launched hundreds of airstrikes and seized a UN-patrolled buffer zone in Syria.
Fox News
13-05-2025
- Politics
- Fox News
Trump's Middle East tour begins with Syria looming as strategic opportunity
Print Close By Chris Massaro Published May 13, 2025 President Donald Trump arrived in Saudi Arabia on Tuesday for his first major overseas trip since retaking office, hoping to secure major deals on trade and diplomatic breakthroughs across the Middle East. The president might have an unexpected and willing partner in Syria's new president who could offer him a huge diplomatic win. "This is a historic opportunity, and it would be a shame if the U.S. lost it," Natasha Hall, senior fellow with the Middle East Program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), told Fox News Digital. President Trump seems open to renewed relations with Syria, including the possibility of lifting crippling sanctions imposed under the previous regime of Bashar al-Assad. ISLAMIST GROUP RUNNING SYRIA HAS MIXED RECORD OVER GOVERNANCE IN PROVINCE, RULED WITH 'IRON FIST' "We may take them off of Syria, because we want to give them a fresh start," President Trump told reporters in the Oval Office on Monday. The president added that "we want to see if we can help them out" and that a determination on Syria sanctions will be made at some point. "Syria now, for the first time, has a government in power that is not only no longer reliant on Iran to survive but is quite hostile to Iran, and so that would be a big opportunity lost if the U.S. didn't step up," Hall added. Mouaz Moustafa, executive director of the Syrian Emergency Task Force, a non-profit helping to bring democracy to Syria, recently met with Syria's interim President Ahmad al-Sharaa in Damascus. Moustafa exclusively told Fox News Digital that the two spoke for over three hours about a potential breakthrough in U.S.-Syrian relations, which have been severed since 2011 following the outbreak of the Syrian civil war, which led to the deaths of over 500,000 people. Moustafa and others are pushing for a meeting between al-Sharaa and President Trump during his visit to the Gulf this week. For Syria's new government, this will be their opportunity to persuade the new administration to do business with a country coming out of a devastating 14-year civil war and mend ties with a leader who was once aligned with the Islamic State and al Qaeda. "Syria's objectives are quite clear on why they would want to meet President Trump in Saudi Arabia, to make headway on some of these core issues of cooperation and to alleviate any of the concerns the White House may have. And some of the things they've been trying to do is to show that they can be cooperative on intelligence issues, on business, and talking about companies seeking to do business in Syria," CSIS' Hall said. SYRIA'S NEW REGIME HITS HEZBOLLAH TARGETS IN LEBANON OVER CLAIMS ITS FIGHTERS WERE EXECUTED Yet others urge caution. "Right now, Sharaa is not restricting political and civil liberties, but he's an authoritarian by nature." former U.S. Ambassador to Syria Robert Ford told Fox News Digital. Ford, who was the last U.S. ambassador in Damascus, was pulled from the embassy in October 2011 after the Syrian uprising turned violent. Ford led the effort to put al-Sharaa on the terrorist list in 2012 and said, although he is pragmatic, he is leading an extremely weak government. "He doesn't control all of Syria yet. The government in Damascus that he leads is not very strong, and it will take time to reassert all of its authority over Syria," Ford said. Ford does not believe al-Sharaa will pursue terrorism as he did in the past, but while there have been some promising developments since taking power, the U.S. must keep its expectations relatively low. "Syria is so weak, militarily and economically, with lots of internal political divisions. Therefore, it's not going to be in a position to sign huge arrangements with the U.S.," Ford cautioned. A senior official in the Syrian Foreign Ministry told Fox News Digital that President al-Sharaa emphasizes "that the new Free Syria seeks to establish a strong strategic relationship with the United States, one grounded in mutual interests and shared partnership." The senior official added that "Damascus sees U.S. President Donald Trump as the leader most capable of achieving peace in the Middle East," noting that Syria hopes to become an active and influential ally to Washington on regional issues. Moustafa also met with members of the National Security Council and conveyed the Syrian president's desire for a new partnership. The National Security Council did not immediately respond to a Fox News Digital request for comment. The new Syrian leader has already shown a willingness to cooperate on some key issues important to the U.S. The new Syrian government has cooperated with U.S. intelligence agencies and foiled several ISIS plots to attack Damascus. Syrian intelligence services also arrested ISIS commander Abu al-Harith al-Iraqi in February. TRUMP TARGETS MASSIVE INVESTMENTS IN FIRST MIDDLE EAST TRIP Moustafa also said that al-Sharaa was worried about the massive buildup of Iranian-backed militias along the Iraqi side of the Syrian border. This is a worry for the U.S. as well as the Trump administration, he said, as it has been looking to reengage with Iran to curb its nuclear program. In al-Sharaa's eyes, the deal of the century would bring peace to Syria and its neighbors, including Israel. Moustafa added the deal would keep China, Russia and Iran out and allow U.S. troops to go home in the right way. Yet critics warn a potential deal with the United States is not without its obstacles. Al-Sharaa led the Islamist rebel group Hay'at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) to victory over the Assad dictatorship in December. He had a $10 million bounty for his capture that was lifted in February amidst the administration's efforts to talk to the new Syrian government. CHRISTIAN WATCH GROUP RISES UP TO PROTECT COMMUNITY AMID GROWING VIOLENCE IN SYRIA HTS is still a designated foreign terrorist organization, which complicates doing business in Syria. "The question at hand is whether to believe that a change in behavior, following the fall of the regime, translates into a more permanent change in character, ideology, and governance," Caroline Rose, director of The New Lines Institute, told Fox News Digital. Rose, who recently traveled to Syria, noted that while HTS has been incrementally breaking away from affiliations with terrorist organizations and has adopted some moderate elements over time, there are still doubts that this will "stick," particularly with recent sectarian tensions. "Skeptics of lifting restrictions on Syria immediately fear that any move could be too premature and could risk the U.S.' credibility among its regional counterparts," Rose added. Since becoming president, al-Sharaa has formed a transitional government composed of close allies from the HTS rebel group and a mix of technocrats, former opposition leaders, civil society activists and even some former members of the Assad government. The temporary constitution signed by al-Sharaa in March guarantees basic freedoms such as freedoms of opinion, expression and the press. It also protects women's rights and promises equal rights for all Syrians regardless of ethnicity, religious sect or gender, yet it still leaves the country under Islamist rule during the transitional process. There remain some concerns over the power concentrated in the hands of the president. The president can unilaterally declare a state of emergency and suspend basic rights if national security is threatened. The vast powers granted to the executive in the new constitution is a reminder for many Syrians of the authoritarian past many suffered at the hands of the Assad regime for over 50 years. Although there is a new sense of optimism within Syrian society about its future, civil peace and security remain elusive. Deadly sectarian clashes in March launched by remnants of the former Assad regime in Syria's coastal region led to the deaths of 200 members of the security forces. Forces allied with the government and armed civilians responded with brute force. The Syrian Network for Human Rights reported that these groups were responsible for the deaths of at least 396 people. CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP Tensions have also escalated with Syria's Druze population as well, highlighting the delicate balance of Syria's complex ethnic divides and the new authority's ability to control various armed factions. The Associated Press contributed to this report. Print Close URL
