Syrians mark first year since Assad's fall as US signals new era in relations

Tens of thousands of Syrians flooded the streets of Damascus connected Monday to people the archetypal day of the Assad regime’s collapse. 

The celebrations came a twelvemonth aft erstwhile Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad fled the superior arsenic rebel forces swept done the state successful a lightning violative that ended 5 decades of Assad household regularisation and opened a caller section successful Syrian history.

A question of transformations and historical firsts has since redrawn Syria's governmental landscape, culminating successful a diplomatic breakthrough with the United States that saw President Donald Trump big interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa successful an unprecedented White House visit.

The long-standing Caesar Syria Civilian Protection Act, viewed arsenic the United States’ astir restrictive sanctions connected Syria since its enactment successful 2019, is connected the verge of being rolled back, with a afloat repeal written into the 2026 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA).

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"Every Syrian is celebrating liberation and present celebrating the removal of the Caesar Act," said Mouaz Moustafa, the enforcement manager of the Syrian Emergency Task Force, who helped draught and sanction the archetypal bill, successful an interrogation with Fox News Digital.

"Caesar was shattering Syria's system and Syria's future, adjacent if everything other went well. And now, Syria has existent hope. Today, with the archetypal day of liberation, the top acquisition that the Syrian radical could person gotten is the lifting of the Caesar Act."

The NDAA is slated for a ballot successful the House this week.

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As Syrians observe the overthrow of Assad, the state present faces the daunting task of rebuilding, from reconstruction and revitalizing the system to seeking justness for families inactive waiting for answers astir loved ones forcibly disappeared by the regime.

People clasp portraits of relatives killed oregon disappeared nether the Assad authorities during a mourning objection astatine Hijaz Station successful Damascus connected Dec. 27, 2024. (Chris McGrath/Getty Images)

Data from the Syrian Network for Human Rights bespeak that much than 170,000 radical stay forcibly disappeared successful Syria betwixt March 2011 and August 2025, an overwhelming bulk of whom were held successful erstwhile Assad authorities detention centers.

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Syria has besides grappled with outbreaks of sectarian unit this year, astir notably successful Sweida, wherever Druze militias, Sunni Bedouin tribes and Syrian authorities forces engaged successful convulsive clashes.

Syrian soldiers assemble adjacent Sweida connected July 15, 2025, arsenic achromatic fume rises pursuing deadly sectarian clashes successful the confederate province. (Stringer/Getty Images)

"There person been occasional clashes and atrocities. I note, and it's interesting, that this caller President Ahmed al-Sharaa has enactment connected trial, publicly, connected unrecorded tv successful Syria, much than a twelve information unit members who are charged with violating quality rights, specified arsenic extrajudicial sidesplitting and amerciable detention and torture," said erstwhile U.S. Ambassador to Syria Robert Ford successful an interrogation with Fox News Digital.

"If they are convicted and held accountable, that volition beryllium remarkable. All the much singular nether the presidency of a antheral who utilized to beryllium successful al Qaeda."

In July, the U.S. State Department formally revoked the overseas violent enactment designation of Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, the Islamist radical formerly led by al-Sharaa.

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U.S. President Donald Trump is expected to conscionable with Syria's interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa astatine the White House. (BING GUAN/POOL/AFP via Getty Images; Aaron Schwartz/CNP/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

Trump has met al-Sharaa, who is besides known by the nom de guerre Abu Mohammed al-Jolani, 3 times since returning to the White House. 

He has praised Syria’s caller person contempt his past and urged Israel to support a "strong and existent dialogue" with Damascus amid Israeli crushed incursions into confederate Syria.

"We are doing everything wrong our powerfulness to marque definite the Government of Syria continues to bash what was intended, which is substantial, successful bid to physique a existent and prosperous Country," said Trump successful a December Truth Social post.

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"It is precise important that Israel support a beardown and existent dialog with Syria, and that thing takes spot that volition interfere with Syria’s improvement into a prosperous State."

Wanted-style portraits of erstwhile Syrian President Bashar Assad are displayed successful a coffeeshop model successful Damascus connected Dec. 7, 2025. (Hussein Malla/AP)

Al-Sharaa called connected the Russian authorities earlier this twelvemonth to manus implicit Assad — who was granted asylum successful Moscow — to look justness for atrocities committed during his clip successful power.

Rep. Joe Wilson, R-S.C., a longtime advocator for the Syrian radical and a subordinate of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, told Fox News Digital successful a connection that it's clip for a caller epoch successful Syria.

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"The advancement we've seen successful the twelvemonth since the autumn of dictator Assad is incredible. Syria has transformed from a Putin puppet and Iranian authorities state to a spouse of the United States, joining the conjugation against ISIS and removing Hezbollah, al-Qaeda, and ISIS. Led by Ambassador Tom Barrack, nether President Trump, we person seized an historical accidental by supporting the efforts of President al-Sharaa and lifting crippling sanctions connected Syria," said Wilson. 

"There is advancement to beryllium made, but absent these bold and visionary actions to springiness Syria a chance, the state would descend into factionalized chaos to beryllium exploited by terrorists," helium said. "Syria has a rich, multi-ethnic, and religiously pluralistic history. The radical suffered implicit fractional a period nether sadistic socialist Assad."