A recent petition submitted to Syria’s interim government is seeking citizenship for foreign fighters who traveled there to take part in the civil war. While President Ahmed al-Sharaa hinted at taking this step for some foreign fighters earlier this year, it is unclear how (or even if) Damascus will answer the current petition, which many have dismissed given the manner in which it was raised (via social media) and the person who initiated it (Bilal Abdul Kareem, a U.S. citizen who is not associated with the factions that lead post-Assad Syria). Whatever the veracity of the current proposal, it comes in the wake of months-long bilateral discussions on this exact issue. In March, the Trump administration gave the new government eight conditions for partial sanctions relief, including a demand that foreign fighters not be installed in senior roles. Damascus responded that this issue “requires a broader consultative session.” In May, the administration updated its conditions, urging Sharaa to “tell all foreign terrorists to leave.” In June, however, U.S. envoy Tom Barrack hinted at a U.S. “understanding” that incorporating some foreign fighters into the Syrian army would be okay if done transparently. Meanwhile, the administration quickly suspended most U.S. sanctions against Syria, signaling (perhaps inadvertently) that its conditions had been sufficiently met. Why did the administration seemingly move from explicit prohibitions to tacit concessions on this complex issue in a matter of weeks? And should certain red lines really be crossed given the fragility of Syria’s transition and the well-documented role that foreign fighters have played in past human rights abuses and recent intercommunal massacres?
Syrian Citizenship for Foreign Fighters? U.S. Red Lines and Nuances | The Washington Institute
