The U.S. will keep HTS on the list of terrorist organizations for the remainder of President Joe Biden’s tenure, leaving the decision to Donald Trump, officials say.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken was heading on Thursday to Rome for talks with European counterparts on bringing stability to Syria in the face of flare-ups with Turkey, capping what is likely his final trip.

Europe may move faster. On January 3rd the French and German foreign ministers met Ahmad al-Sharaa, Syria’s de facto ruler, in Damascus. Annalena Baerbock, the German foreign minister, said it was premature to lift sanctions. In private, though, German diplomats are circulating a proposal which would do just that.

Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin told The Associated Press that the U.S. needs to keep troops deployed in Syria to prevent the Islamic State group from reconstituting as a major threat.

The US has eased sanctions on Syria in a bid to meet needs of the country’s people after the December ouster of Bashar al-Assad. But the Janet Yellen-led Treasury Department kept many restrictions still in place,

Trump’s new “Border Czar,” Tom Homan, also blamed the Biden administration’s “weak stance” on national security for the New Orleans attack and Las Vegas

President Joe Biden has visited a makeshift memorial at the site of the deadly New Year’s attack in New Orleans as he visits the city to meet with grieving families.

A driver behind the wheel of a pickup truck rammed into a crowd of New Orleans revelers on Bourbon Street early on New Year’s Day, killing at least 15 people in what the FBI is investigating as an act of terrorism.

On December 19, the U.S. Department of Defense announced that there are roughly 2,000 troops stationed in Syria – 1,100 more than previously shared with the public. Pentagon spokesperson Major General Patrick Ryder disclosed the new number almost off-handedly,

The Biden administration has eased sanctions blocking transactions with the transitional Syrian government following the ousting of longtime dictator Bashar Assad.  The move marks a gesture of

Analysts say priorities extend beyond anti-ISIL mission and include keeping leverage as Syria’s future takes shape.

The Biden administration is unlikely to lift sanctions and the terror designation of Syria, which prevent the US government from providing direct aid to the country. But US officials have been examining the possibility and other ways to encourage a peaceful transition or the new Syrian government.