• Canada says sanctions lifted in line with decisions taken by allies
• Ottawa listed Syria as a “state supporter of terrorism” in 2012.
• Canada keeps sanctions on 56 individuals tied to Assad era.
  

Canada on Friday removed Syria from its list of states that support terrorism, and revoked Hayat Tahrir al-Sham’s (HTS) designation as a “terrorist entity,” joining a list of countries to ease sanctions on Damascus.

The moves come after HTS ousted former Syrian leader Bashar al-Assad last December and took control of the government.

“These decisions were not taken lightly,” Canada’s foreign ministry said in a statement.

The steps were “in line with recent decisions taken by our allies, including the United Kingdom and the United States, and follow the efforts by the Syrian transitional government to advance Syria’s stability,” it said.

Canada listed Syria as a “state supporter of terrorism” in 2012, as Assad’s crushing of pro-democracy protests plunged the country into civil war.

HTS had been widely sanctioned over its links to Al-Qaeda, but several Western states have delisted the group to allow for better collaboration with the new Syrian government and its president, Ahmed al-Sharaa.

Since taking power, Syria’s new leaders have sought to break from their violent past and present a more moderate image to ordinary Syrians and foreign powers.

Canada is maintaining sanctions on 56 Syrian individuals, including former officials from the fallen Assad regime and members of the Assad family, the foreign ministry said.

Saudi authorities have announced new timings and procedures for visiting Prophet Muhammad’s (PBUH) Roza (tomb) in Al Masjid-e-Nabawi and offering nawafil (voluntary prayers) in Riazul Jannah, with separate schedules for men and women and access regulated through the Nusuk platform.

The Presidency of the Affairs of the Two Holy Mosques said permits must be obtained via Nusuk, with booking generally allowed once every 365 days or through the “Instant Track” option when worshippers are near the Prophet Muhammad’s Mosque. 

Entry to the Noble Roza-e-Rasool is designated through the southern courtyards, in front of Makkah Gate 37, while elderly visitors are allowed to enter using a manual wheelchair.

For men, on regular days, the time for the visit will be from 2:00am until the Fajr prayer and again from 11:20am until the Isha prayer. 

On Fridays, male visitors will have three slots: from 2:00am until Fajr, from 9:20am to 11:20am, and from after the Jummah prayer until Isha, according to the Presidency of the Affairs of the Two Holy Mosques.

For women, on regular days, the time for the visit will be from after Fajr until 11:00am, and from after Isha until 2:00am. 

On Fridays, women will be able to perform the ziyarah (visit) from after the Fajr prayer until 9:00am, in addition to the regular night slot from after Isha until 2:00am, Saudi authorities said.

• Measures hit three Taliban regime ministers and chief justice.
• Sanctions come under Australia’s new framework to pressure Taliban.
• Australia earlier evacuated thousands of Afghans after Taliban takeover.

Australia on Saturday imposed financial sanctions and travel bans on four officials in Afghanistan’s Taliban government over what it said was a deteriorating human rights situation in the country, especially for women and girls.

Australia’s Foreign Minister Penny Wong said the officials were involved “in the oppression of women and girls and in undermining good governance or the rule of law” in the Taliban-run country.

Australia was one of several nations which in August 2021 pulled troops out of Afghanistan, after being part of a Nato-led international force that trained Afghan security forces and fought the Taliban for two decades after Western-backed forces ousted them from power.

The Taliban, since regaining power in Afghanistan, has been criticised for deeply restricting the rights and freedoms of women and girls through bans on education and work.

The Taliban has said it respects women’s rights, in line with its interpretation of religious law and local custom.

Wong said in a statement the sanctions targeted three Taliban ministers and the group’s chief justice, accusing them of restricting access for girls and women “to education, employment, freedom of movement and the ability to participate in public life”.

The measures were part of a new Australian government framework that enabled it to “directly impose its own sanctions and travel bans to increase pressure on the Taliban, targeting the oppression of the Afghan people”, Wong said.

Australia took in thousands of evacuees, mostly women and children, from Afghanistan after the Taliban retook power in the war-shattered South Asian country, where much of the population now relies on humanitarian aid to survive.