Samir al-Baghdad grabbed his pickax and walked up a wobbly set of stairs made of cinderblocks and rubble. He is rebuilding his destroyed family house in the Qaboun neighborhood near Damascus, Syria 's capital.

Saudi Arabia's top diplomat said Friday the kingdom was seeking to help Syria's new authorities secure the lifting of international sanctions, during his first visit to Damascus since Bashar al-Assad's overthrow.

When Bashar al-Assad ruled Syria, merchants like Youssef Rajab kept much of their imported stock hidden for fear of arrest for breaking the law.

The E.U. is moving to ease sanctions in a bid to sway how HTS leads Syria’s transition and to further curb Russian influence in the region, diplomats told The Post.

How the EU moves forward on amending its sanctions regime is closely scrutinised after the US eased restrictions on Syria to increase humanitarian aid earlier this month. No such