US senator threatens to reinstate Syria sanctions over attacks on Kurds
ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - US Senator Lindsey Graham on Saturday threatened to renew “bone crushing” sanctions on the Syrian government if it continues to attack Kurdish forces as US officials ratcheted up pressure on Damascus to halt its military operations.
On Saturday, the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) said they were repeatedly attacked by Syrian state forces after agreeing to hand over several northern Syrian towns to the interim government in a truce brokered by US and other international actors. The concessions came after a week of Syrian military offensives that seized Kurdish-majority areas of Aleppo and displaced at least 150,000 people.
“If there is use of military force by the new Syrian government against Syrian Kurds and the SDF, that would create tremendous instability in Syria and the region and would tell me all I need to know about this new regime,” Graham said in reference to interim Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa’s government.
“If military action is taken by the Syrian government, I will do everything in my power to revive the Caesar Act sanctions, making them even more bone crushing,” Graham, a powerful Republican senator on the Foreign Relations Committee, wrote on X.
Congress repealed the 2019 Ba’ath-era sanctions in December on the condition of Syrian government compliance with human rights and counterterrorism standards. The repeal allows for investment in Syria, which is rebuilding after over a decade of war.
Sinam Mohamad, US representative to the SDF-affiliated Syrian Democratic Council, praised Graham’s support for “de-escalation and a return to dialogue in Syria.”
“It is essential that the government in Damascus is held accountable to its commitments towards the March Agreement and that military escalation stops immediately,” she said in a post on X Saturday.
In March 2025, Kurdish leaders and Damascus agreed to integrate the SDF and other autonomously-run Kurdish institutions into the government but have made little progress since. The recent military offenses were seen as a way to forcefully centralize some Kurdish-controlled areas and open up a strategic route for Syrian forces that includes former Islamic State (ISIS) strongholds.
Nadine Maenza, co-chair of the Washington-based International Religious Freedom (IRF) Roundtable which advocates for religious minorities, said in a post on X, “This week in Washington, Members of Congress and U.S. officials I met with were deeply concerned—and some furious—at Damascus’ actions and its betrayal of Congress’ goodwill in lifting Caesar sanctions. New sanctions should be avoided only if the Syrian government stops immediately and enters dialogue to implement the March 10 agreement.”
The SDF accused Damascus on Saturday of attacking as they prepared to pull out of Deir Hafer, Maskanah and the Thawra oil field near Tabqa, a former ISIS stronghold. Syrian state media reported the army seized several oil fields in the Tabqa area and secured Maskanah, while the SDF said its fighters were “besieged” in Deir Hafer and Maskanah.
“The Kurdish people have long fought for a better future for Syria and have been steadfast American partners,” the Republican House Foreign Affairs Committee said in a statement on X. “It is time for Syrian President al-Sharaa to follow in their footsteps and work for his country’s future, rather than fighting the Kurdish people.”
On Saturday, the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) said they were repeatedly attacked by Syrian state forces after agreeing to hand over several northern Syrian towns to the interim government in a truce brokered by US and other international actors. The concessions came after a week of Syrian military offensives that seized Kurdish-majority areas of Aleppo and displaced at least 150,000 people.
“If there is use of military force by the new Syrian government against Syrian Kurds and the SDF, that would create tremendous instability in Syria and the region and would tell me all I need to know about this new regime,” Graham said in reference to interim Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa’s government.
“If military action is taken by the Syrian government, I will do everything in my power to revive the Caesar Act sanctions, making them even more bone crushing,” Graham, a powerful Republican senator on the Foreign Relations Committee, wrote on X.
Congress repealed the 2019 Ba’ath-era sanctions in December on the condition of Syrian government compliance with human rights and counterterrorism standards. The repeal allows for investment in Syria, which is rebuilding after over a decade of war.
Sinam Mohamad, US representative to the SDF-affiliated Syrian Democratic Council, praised Graham’s support for “de-escalation and a return to dialogue in Syria.”
“It is essential that the government in Damascus is held accountable to its commitments towards the March Agreement and that military escalation stops immediately,” she said in a post on X Saturday.
In March 2025, Kurdish leaders and Damascus agreed to integrate the SDF and other autonomously-run Kurdish institutions into the government but have made little progress since. The recent military offenses were seen as a way to forcefully centralize some Kurdish-controlled areas and open up a strategic route for Syrian forces that includes former Islamic State (ISIS) strongholds.
Nadine Maenza, co-chair of the Washington-based International Religious Freedom (IRF) Roundtable which advocates for religious minorities, said in a post on X, “This week in Washington, Members of Congress and U.S. officials I met with were deeply concerned—and some furious—at Damascus’ actions and its betrayal of Congress’ goodwill in lifting Caesar sanctions. New sanctions should be avoided only if the Syrian government stops immediately and enters dialogue to implement the March 10 agreement.”
The SDF accused Damascus on Saturday of attacking as they prepared to pull out of Deir Hafer, Maskanah and the Thawra oil field near Tabqa, a former ISIS stronghold. Syrian state media reported the army seized several oil fields in the Tabqa area and secured Maskanah, while the SDF said its fighters were “besieged” in Deir Hafer and Maskanah.
US Central Command (CENTCOM) Commander Admiral Brad Cooper, French President Emanuel Macron and other US lawmakers also urged the Syrian government to halt its attacks on Saturday.American policymakers and army on Saturday reacted to Syrian army's attacks on Kurdish fighters. pic.twitter.com/qcfLEeLFBs
— Rudaw English (@RudawEnglish) January 17, 2026
“The Kurdish people have long fought for a better future for Syria and have been steadfast American partners,” the Republican House Foreign Affairs Committee said in a statement on X. “It is time for Syrian President al-Sharaa to follow in their footsteps and work for his country’s future, rather than fighting the Kurdish people.”