Britain Lifts Sanctions on Syrian Security Agencies
Britain on Thursday lifted sanctions that had been imposed on several Syrian government agencies during the rule of the now-deposed president, Bashar al-Assad, in the latest sign of Western engagement with the country's new leaders.
In a notice updating its list of those sanctioned, the British Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office named a dozen organizations — many defense or security related, including Syria's interior and defense ministries and its military intelligence agency — that were no longer subject to an asset freeze.
In a separate statement, it added that Britain would end 'restrictions on some sectors, including financial services and energy production in Syria,' in a move designed to encourage investment in Syrian energy infrastructure and help with the country's economic recovery.
'The Syrian people deserve the opportunity to rebuild their country and economy, and a stable Syria is in the U.K.'s national interest,' Hamish Falconer, a minister at the British Foreign Office responsible for the Middle East, said in the statement.
The move follows the formation last month by Syria's president, Ahmed al-Shara, of a caretaker government that aims to lead the fractured country through a crucial period of transition following the ouster of the Assad family's dictatorship.
Mr. al-Shara, who led the rebel coalition that toppled Mr. al-Assad in December, has been trying to persuade Western capitals that he and his compatriots have cast off their jihadist origins.
Europe and the United States had already eased some sanctions on the country, in part in response to that push and calls from some charities to relax restrictions to help reconstruction efforts. But, in a recent interview with The New York Times, Mr. al-Shara said that the measures taken against the former Syrian government were still hobbling his ability to kick start the economy.
'The sanctions were implemented as a response to crimes committed by the previous regime against the people,' he said.
Last month, American officials pressed that more demands to be met, including the destruction of chemical weapons stores and cooperation on counterterrorism efforts, before more sanctions are lifted.
Mr. al-Shara told The Times that some of the American conditions 'need to be discussed or modified,' but did not give further details.
In February, European Union foreign ministers ended sanctions on five financial entities and suspended some measures taken against the Syrian oil, gas, electricity and transportation industries.
In March Britain lifted its freeze on the assets of 24 Syrian entities, including the Central Bank of Syria, Syrian Arab Airlines and energy companies.
Then, earlier this month Britain welcomed the creation of the new Syrian government, describing it as 'an important milestone' in the country's transition.
Among the groups removed from the British sanctions list on Thursday were the Ministry of Interior, the Ministry of Defense, the General Intelligence Directorate, the Air Force Intelligence Agency, the Political Security Directorate, the Syrian National Security Bureau, the Military Intelligence Directorate and the Army Supply Bureau. Several media organizations, including a state-run agency and outlets that published information supporting the former government, were also in Thursday's announcement.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
New York Times
16 minutes ago
- New York Times
Jon Stewart to Los Angeles: ‘Is Your City Ever Not on Fire?'
Welcome to Best of Late Night, a rundown of the previous night's highlights that lets you sleep — and lets us get paid to watch comedy. Here are the 50 best movies on Netflix right now. Fire and I.C.E. Things have been tense for days in Los Angeles, where President Trump deployed the military in response to protests against immigration raids. Jon Stewart called the situation 'the very predictable result of a liberal city, reliant on an immigrant population, colliding with a heavy-handed MAGA migrant-trawling operation looking to hit its quota of brown Pokémen. Gotta catch 'em all!' 'Is it too much to ask to have one weekend where I don't have to Google 'when count as martial law'?' — STEPHEN COLBERT 'It's an explosive situation, on the cusp of federalism vs. states' rights, border control vs. due process, terrifyingly militarized sweeps vs. hard-working people in local communities, the United States Marines vs. the Postmates guy who brought you an egg sandwich.' — JON STEWART 'Trump's actions are shocking because this troop deployment is in defiance of the California government. Normally, the governor is in charge of the National Guard, and in Los Angeles, local and state authorities had not sought help in dealing with the protests. So nobody asked for this, and it's only going to make things worse. And in Los Angeles, there's a word for that: 'Transformers: Rise of the Beasts.'' — STEPHEN COLBERT 'There has been some pelting of police and I.C.E. agents with rocks and garbage. For instance, people began throwing objects at law enforcement in a protest that started when demonstrators took over the 101, though locals were quick to point out they should've taken over the 405 to the 5, saved at least 10 minutes on the road to fascism.' — STEPHEN COLBERT 'Also, if you're against property damage and protesters flying un-American flags, you guys would've hated Jan. 6.' — SETH MEYERS 'And quick question for those of you who live in that area: Is your city ever not on fire? Whether you win a basketball championship, a World Series championship, whether you have an exploding piñata gender reveal gone wrong — congratulations, it's a boy and an evacuation! — or you're just protesting the Trump administration's expanded deportation raids, L.A. continues to be our most flammable city.' — JON STEWART The Punchiest Punchlines (The Long Breakup Edition) 'Everybody's still talking about Trump's feud with Elon Musk, and apparently, Trump is considering getting rid of the Tesla that he bought a few months ago — although that's the same feeling every Tesla owner has.' — JIMMY FALLON 'Giving up the car makes sense. I mean, after a breakup, you always get rid of things that remind you of your ex.' — JIMMY FALLON 'I wouldn't worry. The dude has plenty of breakups. You know his policy — don't cry because it's over, frown because it happened.' — SETH MEYERS Want all of The Times? Subscribe.
Politico
28 minutes ago
- Politico
Israeli navy attacks rebel-held Yemeni port city of Hodeida
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates — The Israeli navy attacked docks in Yemen's rebel-held port city of Hodeida on Tuesday, likely damaging facilities that are key to aid shipments to the hungry, war-wracked nation. The Israeli military said navy missile ships conducted the strikes, the first time its forces have been involved in attacks against the Houthi rebels. Tuesday's attack comes as the Houthis have repeatedly launched missiles and drones targeting Israel during its war on Hamas in the Gaza Strip. The Houthis announced the attack via their al-Masirah satellite news channel. They said the attack targeted docks there, without elaborating. Late Monday, Israel issued online warnings to Yemenis to evacuate from Ras Isa, Hodeida and al-Salif ports over the Houthis' alleged use of seaports for attacks. 'The port is used to transfer weapons and is a further example of the Houthi terrorist regime's cynical exploitation of civilian infrastructure in order to advance terrorist activities,' the Israeli military said in a statement Tuesday. Hodeida also is the main entry point for food and other humanitarian aid for millions of Yemenis since the war began when the Houthis seized Yemen's capital, Sanaa, in 2014. The Houthis have been launching persistent missile and drone attacks against commercial and military ships in the region in what the group's leadership has described as an effort to end Israel's offensive in Gaza. From November 2023 until January 2025, the Houthis targeted more than 100 merchant vessels with missiles and drones, sinking two of them and killing four sailors. That has greatly reduced the flow of trade through the Red Sea corridor, which typically sees $1 trillion of goods move through it annually. The Houthis paused attacks in a self-imposed ceasefire until the U.S. launched a broad assault against the rebels in mid-March. President Donald Trump paused those attacks just before his trip to the Mideast, saying the rebels had 'capitulated' to American demands. Early Tuesday, U.S. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth wrote on the social platform X that U.S. Navy ships had traveled through the Red Sea and its Bab el-Mandeb Strait 'multiple times in recent days' without facing Houthi attacks. 'These transits occurred without challenge and demonstrate the success of both Operation ROUGH RIDER and the President's Peace Through Strength agenda,' Hegseth wrote ahead of facing Congress for the first time since sharing sensitive military details of America's military campaign against the Houthis in a Signal chat. It's unclear how the Houthis will respond now that an attack has come from the sea, rather than the air, from the Israelis. Meanwhile, a wider, decadelong war in Yemen between the Houthis and the country's exiled government, backed by a Saudi-led coalition, remains in a stalemate.
CNBC
29 minutes ago
- CNBC
CNBC Daily Open: 'Good reports' from U.S.-China talks could push S&P 500 to new high, analysts say
Trade negotiators from the U.S. and China have met in London, and talks are expected to continue Tuesday, a source familiar with the situation told CNBC's Megan Casella. It seems that coaxing China to relax its rare earths export curbs is at the top of America's agenda, according to a CNBC interview with U.S. National Economic Council Director Kevin Hassett. If China's actions late last week — when it seemingly gave Western automakers concessions regarding those minerals — are any indication, Beijing could be willing to accede to the request. The world's second-biggest economy would demand reciprocity. On June 2, Beijing bristled at Washington's tighter grip on exports of chip design software to China. It's a good thing, then, that Washington also appears to be in a conciliatory mood. "Our expectation is that … immediately after the handshake, any export controls from the U.S. will be eased," Hassett said on CNBC's "Squawk Box." Indeed, Trump has reportedly authorized Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent's team to lift those curbs, according to The Wall Street Journal, and has described receiving "good reports" from the U.S. contingent. If the U.S.-China talks go well, there's a chance the S&P 500, only around 2% off its February high as of Tuesday morning Singapore time, could reach a new peak, noted the JPMorgan trading desk. That'd be something to cheer, of course. But it's slightly disappointing that the S&P could have continued scaling heights from February, or at least broken its closing high much earlier in the year, if not for truculent trade policy from the White House — which, as is evident from the meeting between U.S. and China, governments are still trying to undo. U.S.-China talks set to go into Day 2U.S. President Donald Trump's top trade officials met Chinese counterparts in London on Monday for talks aimed at resolving their trade dispute — particularly with regard to mineral exports. Discussions are set to continue Tuesday. Late last week, in an apparent olive branch, China seemed to offer U.S. and European auto giants something of a reprieve regarding its exports of rare earth elements. Markets inch up globallyU.S. stocks edged up Monday. The S&P 500 added 0.09%, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was mostly flat, and the Nasdaq Composite rose 0.31%. Asia-Pacific markets rose Tuesday. South Korea's Kospi index was up 0.38% at 1:30 p.m. Singapore time. Analysts from Macquarie Group say they think the country's stock market will rally and enter a bull market on the back of "expansionary fiscal policy" from the new government. A new 'Liquid Glass' look for Apple's iOSApple held its annual Worldwide Developers Conference keynote on Monday. At the event, the company announced a redesign to its iOS system called "Liquid Glass," a virtual glass look that was inspired by the Vision Pro and the most significant redesign of its operating system since 2013. Investors were underwhelmed by the announcements — which lacked developments on the AI front — and sent shares down 1.2%. UK in a 'Goldilocks' moment: Nvidia CEO "The U.K. is in a Goldilocks circumstance," Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang said Monday on a panel with British Prime Minister Keir Starmer and Investment Minister Poppy Gustafsson. "You can't do machine learning without a machine — and so the ability to build these AI supercomputers here in the U.K. will naturally attract more startups," Huang said, though he added that the country lacks homegrown AI infrastructure. [PRO] New record for S&P soon?The S&P 500 ticked higher on Monday and continues to chip away at the gap to a new record high. The broad-based index is just 2% below its record close set in February. Several events in the days ahead could prove to be the catalyst that vaults it over the top, according to the JPMorgan trading desk. China's homegrown coffee giants are brewing up a U.S. expansion Chinese beverage chains are redefining coffee culture in the country — and now they're trying to win over customers in the U.S. and beyond. Luckin Coffee, China's largest coffee chain, has expanded aggressively in China and overtaken Starbucks on the mainland, with more than twice as many outlets. After venturing into Singapore, Hong Kong and Malaysia, Luckin is set to take its biggest leap yet with plans to open a branch in lower Manhattan. "New York is probably culturally the best testing ground for an international brand to expand into, especially a Chinese one," said Bernstein senior analyst Danilo Gargiulo, citing the city's diversity and large base of young consumers. "But it's also the most saturated, one of the most competitive markets."
