The toughest U.S. sanctions yet on Syria take effect this week, increasing the pressure on President Bashar al-Assad as he grapples with a deepening economic crisis after a decade of war.
FILE PHOTO: A picture of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad is seen on a door of a butcher shop, during a lockdown to prevent the spread of the coronavirus disease , in Damascus, Syria April 22, 2020. Picture taken April 22, 2020. REUTERS/Yamam Al Shaar
The new sanctions give U.S. President Donald Trump wider powers to freeze the assets of anyone dealing with Syria, regardless of nationality, and cover many more sectors from construction to energy. Lebanon, a traditional conduit of goods and finance for Syria, will be hard hit as businesses with links to Damascus will have to navigate the new risks, bankers say. Other business partners in neighbouring Jordan and in the UAE are already on edge, abandoning plans to invest in Syria, businessmen say.
As economic conditions worsen further, there is also the possibility of a new wave of unrest: rare demonstrations have recently broken out in Sweida, a government-controlled area that did not rise up against Assad in 2011.The new law exempts imports of essential food and humanitarian items but adds more scrutiny to U.N. and NGO aid to ensure they are not benefiting Assad’s government.
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