BEIRUT: Kurdish-led authorities in northeastern Syria are in talks with their military allies in a US-led coalition on a promised exemption from US sanctions targeting the Syrian government, a senior Kurdish official said.
Washington says the sanctions, which took effect last week, mark the start of a sustained campaign of economic and political pressure on President Bashar Assad to stop the war in Syria and agree to a political solution.
Northeastern Syria is controlled by Kurdish-led militia who have helped the US-led coalition fight Islamic State, driving the jihadists out of swathes of Syrian territory.
Badran Jia Kurd, a vice president of the regional administration, said the sanctions would have an impact on his area, which trades with government-held Syria via local merchants and uses the Syrian pound, which has plunged in value.
“They will lead to an increase in prices to a very great degree and to weakness in trade activity with the Syrian interior, while on the other hand crossings to Iraq are closed, meaning the region was already living an economic siege,” Jia Kurd said.
“They told us the self-administration regions will be exempt from the Caesar sanctions but the mechanisms and means to achieve this exemption are being discussed with the international coalition.”
The sanctions are named after a Syrian military photographer who smuggled thousands of photos out of Syria showing mass killings, torture and other crimes.
A US State Department spokesperson said the United States had provided exemptions for humanitarian aid in all areas of Syria since the beginning of sanctions against the government and would remain in close coordination with its partners.
“We do not comment on the substance of private, diplomatic conversations,” the spokesperson wrote in emailed comments.
The coalition has said the sanctions do not impede humanitarian assistance or hinder “coalition stabilization activities in northeast Syria.”
The new sanctions allow for the freezing of assets of anyone dealing with Syria, regardless of nationality.
Kurdish-led authorities in Syria in talks over US sanctions exemption
https://arab.news/b52vb
Kurdish-led authorities in Syria in talks over US sanctions exemption
- New sanctions targeting Syrian government began last week
- Kurdish-led militia control northeastern Syria
Spain highlights importance of Gaza reconstruction
- Spain officially recognized Palestine as a state in May 2024, in a coordinated move alongside Ireland and Norway
RAMALLAH: The Palestinian prime minister, Mohammed Mustafa, and the Spanish foreign minister, Jose Manuel Albares, on Friday discussed the latest developments in the West Bank and Gaza Strip.
During their telephone conversation they emphasized the need to intensify international efforts to end the Israeli occupation and halt attacks and settler violence, and to secure the release of Palestinian funds held by Israeli authorities.
They affirmed the importance of ongoing efforts relating to plans for the reconstruction of Gaza, and Europe’s significant role in this process. Mustafa and Albares highlighted the need to unify Palestinian institutions in Gaza with those in the West Bank, with the aim of establishing a Palestinian state in line with international resolutions, including last year’s New York Declaration.
They also discussed coordination between their countries, and the strengthening of Spain’s political, diplomatic and financial support for Palestine, and Mustafa thanked Spain for its ongoing support.
Spain officially recognized Palestine as a state in May 2024, in a coordinated move alongside Ireland and Norway. Estephan Salameh, the Palestinian finance and planning minister, is set to visit Spain this month to discuss enhanced cooperation, particularly in the areas of development and reconstruction. Meanwhile, Israel continues operating in the occupied West Bank.
The Palestinian Prisoners media office said on Friday that Israel carried out numerous raids across the territory, including the major cities of Ramallah and Hebron, according to The Associated Press.
Nearly 50 people were detained, following the arrest of at least 50 other Palestinians on Thursday, most of those in the Ramallah area.
As 2026 begins, the shaky 12-week-old ceasefire between Israel and Hamas has largely ended large-scale Israeli bombardment of Gaza.
But Palestinians are still being killed by Israeli fire, especially along the so-called Yellow Line that delineates areas under Israeli control, and the humanitarian crisis is compounded by frequent winter rains and colder temperatures.
On Friday, American actor and film producer Angelina Jolie visited the Rafah border crossing between Egypt and the Gaza Strip.
The only crossing between the territory and a country other than Israel, it remains closed despite Palestinian requests to reopen it to people and aid.
Jolie met with members of the Red Crescent on the Egyptian side of the Rafah border crossing and then visited a hospital in the nearby city of Arish to speak with Palestinian patients on Friday, according to Egyptian officials.
Aid groups say not enough shelter materials are getting into Gaza during the truce.
