Syrians mark first year since Assad’s fall as US signals new era in relations

Tens of thousands of Syrians flooded the streets of Damascus on Monday to mark the first anniversary of the Assad regime’s collapse. 

The celebrations came a year after former Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad fled the capital as rebel forces swept through the country in a lightning offensive that ended five decades of Assad family rule and opened a new chapter in Syrian history.

A wave of transformations and historic firsts has since redrawn Syria’s political landscape, culminating in a diplomatic breakthrough with the United States that saw President Donald Trump host interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa in an unprecedented White House visit.

The long-standing Caesar Syria Civilian Protection Act, viewed as the United States’ most restrictive sanctions on Syria since its enactment in 2019, is on the verge of being rolled back, with a full repeal written into the 2026 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA).

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“Every Syrian is celebrating liberation and now celebrating the removal of the Caesar Act,” said Mouaz Moustafa, the executive director of the Syrian Emergency Task Force, who helped draft and name the original bill, in an interview with Fox News Digital.

“Caesar was shattering Syria’s economy and Syria’s future, even if everything else went well. And now, Syria has true hope. Today, with the first anniversary of liberation, the greatest gift that the Syrian people could have gotten is the lifting of the Caesar Act.”

The NDAA is slated for a vote in the House this week.

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As Syrians celebrate the overthrow of Assad, the country now faces the daunting task of rebuilding, from reconstruction and revitalizing the economy to seeking justice for families still waiting for answers about loved ones forcibly disappeared by the regime.

Data from the Syrian Network for Human Rights indicate that more than 170,000 people remain forcibly disappeared in Syria between March 2011 and August 2025, an overwhelming majority of whom were held in former Assad regime detention centers.

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Syria has also grappled with outbreaks of sectarian violence this year, most notably in Sweida, where Druze militias, Sunni Bedouin tribes and Syrian government forces engaged in violent clashes.

“There have been occasional clashes and atrocities. I note, and it’s interesting, that this new President Ahmed al-Sharaa has put on trial, publicly, on live television in Syria, more than a dozen security force members who are charged with violating human rights, such as extrajudicial killing and illegal detention and torture,” said former U.S. Ambassador to Syria Robert Ford in an interview with Fox News Digital.

“If they are convicted and held accountable, that will be remarkable. All the more remarkable under the presidency of a man who used to be in al Qaeda.”

In July, the U.S. State Department formally revoked the foreign terrorist organization designation of Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, the Islamist group formerly led by al-Sharaa.

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Trump has met al-Sharaa, who is also known by the nom de guerre Abu Mohammed al-Jolani, three times since returning to the White House. 

He has praised Syria’s new leader despite his past and urged Israel to maintain a “strong and true dialogue” with Damascus amid Israeli ground incursions into southern Syria.

“We are doing everything within our power to make sure the Government of Syria continues to do what was intended, which is substantial, in order to build a true and prosperous Country,” said Trump in a December Truth Social post.

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“It is very important that Israel maintain a strong and true dialogue with Syria, and that nothing takes place that will interfere with Syria’s evolution into a prosperous State.”

Al-Sharaa called on the Russian government earlier this year to hand over Assad — who was granted asylum in Moscow — to face justice for atrocities committed during his time in power.

Rep. Joe Wilson, R-S.C., a longtime advocate for the Syrian people and a member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, told Fox News Digital in a statement that it’s time for a new era in Syria.

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“The progress we’ve seen in the year since the fall of dictator Assad is incredible. Syria has transformed from a Putin puppet and Iranian regime ally to a partner of the United States, joining the coalition against ISIS and removing Hezbollah, al-Qaeda, and ISIS. Led by Ambassador Tom Barrack, under President Trump, we have seized an historic opportunity by supporting the efforts of President al-Sharaa and lifting crippling sanctions on Syria,” said Wilson. 

“There is progress to be made, but absent these bold and visionary actions to give Syria a chance, the country would descend into factionalized chaos to be exploited by terrorists,” he said. “Syria has a rich, multi-ethnic, and religiously pluralistic history. The people suffered over half a century under sadistic socialist Assad.”