US to revoke terrorist designation on Syrian group HTS

The State Department will officially revoke the foreign terrorist designation for the al-Nusrah Front, the group whose leader now heads the government in Syria after orchestrating the overthrow of dictator Bashar Assad late last year.

The move, outlined in a to-be-published memo dated late June, comes in conjunction with President Donald Trump’s order last month to lift sanctions on Syria to support “the country’s path to stability and peace.” Along with lifting those sanctions, the president also ordered a review of the designation of the al-Nusrah Front, which is also known as Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham, as a terrorist group.

The revocation of the designation will go into effect once the memo, signed by Secretary of State Marco Rubio, is published. It is scheduled for publication Tuesday.

“A unified Syria that protects its people and rejects extremism strengthens security and prosperity in the Middle East,” the fact sheet released after Trump’s executive order read.

HTS has been designated as a foreign terrorist group since 2018. The group was once part of al Qaeda’s network, but now claims it is an “independent entity.” It is headed by Ahmed al-Sharaa, the Syrian president who in December ousted Assad after years of civil war in the country.

Trump called his May meeting with al-Sharaa “great,” praising the leader as “attractive” and “tough.”

“Recent positive changes and actions taken by the Government of Syria, after the fall of the brutal Assad Regime, demonstrate promise for a stable and peaceful future,” the fact sheet read.