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The United States State Department has revoked the Foreign Terrorist Organization designation of the al-Nusrah Front, also known as Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), according to an unpublished Federal Register notice dated June 23 and scheduled for official publication Tuesday.
“In consultation with the Attorney General and the Secretary of the Treasury, I hereby revoke the designation of al-Nusrah Front, also known as Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham (and other aliases) as a Foreign Terrorist Organization,” Secretary of State Marco Rubio said in the notice.
The revocation will take effect immediately upon publication.
HTS had been listed as a Foreign Terrorist Organization since 2018, when the designation of its predecessor, the al-Qaeda affiliate Jabhat al-Nusra, was expanded to include the group.
The decision follows sweeping developments in Syria, where ousted regime leader Assad fled to Russia on Dec. 8 after anti-regime forces led by HTS captured Damascus in a rapid offensive. Assad had ruled Syria for nearly 25 years.
In January, a transitional administration was established in Syria under President Ahmad al-Sharaa.
Last month, U.S. President Donald Trump signed an executive order formally lifting longstanding sanctions on Syria.
In May, Trump announced the decision during an investment forum in Riyadh, calling the sanctions “brutal and crippling.” One day later, he met with President Sharaa in Saudi Arabia—the first meeting between U.S. and Syrian leaders in 25 years.
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