Syria removed: Which countries are still on the US ‘terror’ list – and why?

The United States has removed Syria from its list of State Sponsors of Terrorism (SSOT), marking another major shift in Washington’s relationship with the country following the fall of the Bashar al-Assad regime in December 2024 at the end of a brutal 14-year civil war.

“Today, Syria shakes off a dark stain and tears away a painful chapter of its past to embark on a path of development, reconstruction and rebuilding,” Syria’s President Ahmed al-Sharaa said in a speech on Tuesday.

US President Donald Trump had announced the planned removal in July, which had been in place since 1979. It took effect following a 45-day congressional review.

The US “terrorism” designation had triggered restrictions on foreign assistance, defence exports, certain financial transactions and the transfer of some dual-use goods – products which can have military uses, as well.

It can also cause banks and companies to be wary of doing business with a country because of the legal and compliance risks involved. The removal of Syria leaves Cuba, Iran and North Korea as the only countries currently on the US “terrorism blacklist”.

Syria had been on the SSOT list since 1979, when the government of Hafez al-Assad was accused by Washington of supporting armed groups opposed to Israel.

The designation continued when his son, Bashar al-Assad, assumed power in 2000 and lasted for the entirety of his rule, which came to an end when he was overthrown in a lightning strike on Damascus by rebel groups led by al-Sharaa in December 2024. Al-Assad and members of his family fled Syria and are currently under supervisory asylum in Moscow.

In July this year, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the decision to remove Syria from the list came following “formal assurances” from the Syrian president that the country will not “support acts of international terrorism in the future”.