ERBIL, Kurdistan Region of Iraq – Mazloum Abdi, leader of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), on Tuesday hailed the United States’ removal of Syria from the state sponsors of terror list and said it unlocks new opportunities, days after he announced the full integration of the Kurdish-led force into state institutions. 

The US Treasury on Monday announced the removal of Syria from the state sponsors of terror list after nearly five decades of being blacklisted, praising the decision as one that “will help foster additional investment in Syria to promote political and economic stability.” 

“We welcome the decision to remove Syria from the list of state sponsors of terrorism,” Abdi said on X. “This encouragement gradually strengthens the path toward improving international relations and opens new avenues for achieving justice and reform.” 

The move also comes amid warming ties between Washington and the new authorities in Damascus, led by rebel-turned-president Ahmed al-Sharaa. 

Syrian rebel groups, spearheaded by Sharaa and his Islamist-led Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), launched operation “Deterrence of Aggression” on November 27, 2024, seizing the capital Damascus after a 12-day blitz offensive, and ending Bashar al-Assad’s 24-year reign.

In the wake of Assad’s fall, HTS and affiliated groups dissolved and its membership took up the reins of governance in Syria, forming a transitional government led by Sharaa as the country’s interim president.

Abdi further asserted that Washington’s decision “fulfills our people’s aspirations for security, peace, and prosperity.” 

On Thursday, Abdi announced that the integration of the SDF and Rojava’s (northeast Syria) administration into the Syrian state was “complete.” 

Rojava and Damascus signed an agreement on January 29 that would see the Kurdish-led autonomous administration in northeast Syria brought under the auspices of the Syrian state, coming after violent clashes in Aleppo's Kurdish-majority Sheikh Maqsoud neighborhood culminated in a broader offensive by Syrian forces under the leadership of Sharaa into Rojava.

Since that juncture, units of the SDF have been absorbed into the Syrian security apparatus and a new nationwide parliament was formed. However, sporadic tensions have arisen due to attacks on displaced Kurds returning to their homes and the nature of the integration process, which has been heavily criticized in some Kurdish quarters and has thus far failed to establish a new role for the all-female Women's Protection Units (YPJ).

In November, Washington removed Sharaa from its list of Specially Designated Global Terrorists ahead of Sharaa’s visit to the White House. Syria also became the 90th partner to join the international coalition to defeat ISIS that month.

Up until December 2024, Sharaa, then going by Abu Mohammad al-Jolani was on the US’ “most wanted” list with a $10 million bounty for his arrest.