LONDON: Britain removed sanctions on Syrian President Ahmad Al-Sharaa on Friday, after the United Nations Security Council did the same ahead of his meeting with US President Donald Trump on Monday. Britain said in the same statement that it was also lifting sanctions on Syria’s interior minister Anas Khattab. Both men had formerly been subject to financial sanctions targeted at Islamic State and Al-Qaeda.

Fourteen of the 15 members of the Security Council, including Russia, voted in favor of the US-drafted resolution

US ambassador to the UN Mike Waltz said the move sent a "strong political signal" that Syria was in a "new era".