Syrian rights monitor calls for lifting economic sanctions

The Syrian Network for Human Rights said that the sanctions imposed on the Assad regime were due to the crimes against humanity and war crimes it has committed since March 2011, and due to the failure of the UN Security Council to stop the atrocities, US, EU, and a number of countries imposed economic and political sanctions as compensation for this failure and as a tool to hold the regime accountable, pressure the Assad regime to change its criminal behavior, and push it to accept a political solution.

SNHR added in a statement that it supported the use of sanctions as a tool against the Assad regime, especially against individuals involved in serious violations. Over the years, the network contributed to including dozens of them on the sanctions lists. However, the major shift in the Syrian scene with the fall of the Assad regime on December 8, 2024, the Syrian Network for Human Rights believes that sanctions have lost their justification as a means of deterrence, punishment, and political change.

The network stressed that the continuation of sanctions, in the absence of the former regime, could transform them from a tool for accountability into an obstacle to Syrian recovery efforts, as the country today faces enormous challenges that require great efforts to rebuild infrastructure, restore basic services, and revitalize the economy.

Therefore, maintaining economic sanctions threatens to undermine humanitarian efforts and hinders the flow of vital resources, which further complicates the tasks of local and international organizations in providing aid and reconstruction. The continuation of sanctions also represents a major obstacle to the return of refugees and displaced persons, and hinders the efforts of the United Nations, civil society organizations, and private companies, due to the restrictions imposed on financial and commercial transactions, which prevent the provision of basic materials or the transfer of funds necessary to support those affected, according to the network.

SNHR called for maintaining individual sanctions targeting about 300 figures from the Assad regime, such as (Bashar al-Assad, Asma al-Akhras, Maher al-Assad, Rami Makhlouf, Ayman Jabr, Ali Mamlouk, Jamil Hassan, Abdul Salam Mahmoud), to ensure their prosecution and accountability.

The statement stressed the need for lifting sanctions to be conditional on the existence of strict and transparent oversight mechanisms to ensure that funds are not leaked to corrupt parties or those involved in human rights violations. The network also demands that the new Syrian government adhere to human rights standards and implement reforms that promote justice and equality within Syrian society.