DAMASCUS: Syria has carried out nationwide pre-emptive operations targeting Daesh cells, a spokesperson for the Interior Ministry said on Saturday.
Syrian security forces carried out 61 raids, with 71 people arrested and explosives and weapons seized, the spokesperson told state-run Al Ekhbariya TV.
The raids come ahead of a trip by Syrian President Ahmed Al-Sharaa to Washington to meet with US President Donald Trump and join an anti-Daesh US-led coalition.
The US State Department and Pentagon did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Washington is preparing to establish a military presence at an air base in Damascus to help enable a security pact that the US is brokering between Syria and Israel, six sources familiar with the matter
previously told Reuters.
A US administration official also previously said that Washington was constantly evaluating its necessary posture in Syria to effectively combat Daesh.
Syria carries out pre-emptive operations against Daesh cells
https://arab.news/28shs
Syria carries out pre-emptive operations against Daesh cells
- Syrian security forces carried out 61 raids, with 71 people arrested
- The raids come ahead of a trip by Syrian President Ahmed Al-Sharaa to Washington
Syria’s growth accelerates as sanctions ease, refugees return
- Economy grows much faster than World Bank’s 1% estimate, fueling plans for currency’s relaunch
NEW YORK: Syria’s economy is growing much faster than the World Bank’s 1 percent estimate for 2025 as refugees flow back after the end of a 14-year civil war, fueling plans for the relaunch of the country’s currency and efforts to build a new Middle East financial hub, central bank Governor AbdulKader Husrieh has said.
Speaking via video link at a conference in New York, Husrieh also said he welcomed a deal with Visa to establish digital payment systems and added that the country is working with the International Monetary Fund to develop methods to accurately measure economic data to reflect the resurgence.
The Syrian central bank chief, who is helping guide the war-torn country’s reintegration into the global economy after the fall of Bashar Assad’s regime about a year ago, described the repeal of many US sanctions against Syria as “a miracle.”
The US Treasury on Nov. 10 announced a 180-day extension of the suspension of the so-called Caesar sanctions against Syria; lifting them entirely requires approval by the US Congress.
Husrieh said that based on discussions with US lawmakers, he expects the sanctions to be repealed by the end of 2025, ending “the last episode of the sanctions.”
“Once this happens, this will give comfort to our potential correspondent banks about dealing with Syria,” he said.
Husrieh also said that Syria was working to revamp regulations aimed at combating money laundering and the financing of terrorism, which he said would provide further assurances to international lenders.
Syria’s central bank has recently organized workshops with banks from the US, Turkiye, Jordan and Australia to discuss due diligence in reviewing transactions, he added.
Husrieh said that Syria is preparing to launch a new currency in eight note denominations and confirmed plans to remove two zeroes from them in a bid to restore confidence in the battered pound.
“The new currency will be a signal and symbol for this financial liberation,” Husrieh said. “We are glad that we are working with Visa and Mastercard,” Husrieh said.
