Trump removes sanctions on Syria

United States President Donald Trump has lifted long-standing sanctions on Syria, while Israel expressed "interest" in peace deals with neighboring Syria and Lebanon — though it insisted the status of the Golan Heights remains "nonnegotiable".

In an executive order on Monday, Trump terminated the "national emergency" in place since 2004, which had imposed sanctions on Syria and affected most state-run institutions, including the central bank.

The sanctions had been imposed on the government of former Syrian president Bashar al-Assad, who was overthrown in December. The White House said it would monitor the Syrian interim government's actions, including "taking concrete steps toward normalizing ties with Israel".

Syria's interim Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shaibani hailed the US move as a "major turning point".

"With the lifting of this major obstacle to economic recovery, the long-awaited doors are opening for reconstruction and development", as are the conditions "for the dignified return of displaced Syrians to their homeland", he wrote on X.

In May, Trump told Syrian interim leader Ahmed al-Sharaa that the US would lift sanctions and explore normalizing relations as a major policy shift.

Still, some restrictions remain in place. The US still designates Syria as a state sponsor of terrorism and Hayat Tahrir al-Sham — led by Sharaa — as a foreign terrorist organization.

The Assad family's 54-year rule ended on Dec 8. Just days later, leaders of Hayat Tahrir al-Sham formed an interim government, which has since scrambled to restore order, rebuild institutions and reach out to regional and global partners.

Israel and the US argued that with Iran "weakened" by last month's 12-day conflict, other regional countries have an opportunity to forge ties with Israel.

Israel's attacks on Iran opened a "window that has never existed", said Tom Barrack, US special envoy for Syria. "Syria needs to be given a chance, and that's what's happened."

Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar said on Monday that his country was interested in normalizing ties with Syria as well as Lebanon in an expansion of the so-called Abraham Accords, but will not discuss ceding the Golan Heights in any peace deal.

Throughout the conflict in Gaza, Saudi Arabia has repeatedly said establishing ties with Israel was conditional on the creation of an independent Palestinian state.

Saar said it was "not constructive "for other states to condition normalization on Palestinian statehood. "Our view is that a Palestinian state will threaten the security of Israel."

Israel annexed the Golan Heights in 1981 after capturing the territory from Syria during the 1967 Arab-Israeli War. While the international community regards the Golan as occupied Syrian land, Trump recognized Israeli sovereignty over it during his first term in office.

Integral part

A senior Syrian official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said Damascus would never give up the Golan Heights, describing it as an integral part of Syrian territory.

The swift resolution of the Israel-Iran conflict has revived hopes for a halt to the fighting in Gaza, where more than 20 months of combat have created an unprecedented humanitarian crisis. Meanwhile, Axios reported that Trump will host Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the White House on Monday for a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas.

Despite diplomatic efforts, the US State Department has approved a potential $510 million sale of Munitions Guidance Kits and Munitions Support with related equipment to Israel, the Pentagon said on Monday. Boeing was the principal contractor, Reuters reported.

On the ground, Gaza officials said Israeli forces killed at least 74 people on Monday, including 30 at a seafront rest area, as fresh calls grow for a ceasefire in the war-ravaged territory.

"I saw body parts flying everywhere, and bodies cut and burned ... It was a scene that made your skin crawl," 26-year-old witness Ahmed al-Nayrab said.

Agencies and Xinhua contributed to this story.