Congress members pay an unofficial visit to Syria as US mulls sanctions relief

DAMASCUS, Syria (AP) — Two Republican members of the U.S. Congress were in the Syrian capital Friday on an unofficial visit organized by a Syrian-American nonprofit, the first by U.S. legislators since the fall of former Syrian President Bashar Assad in December.

Also Friday, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas met with Syrian President Ahmad al-Sharaa in his first visit since Assad’s fall and since the beginning of the Syrian uprising-turned-civil-war in 2011.

Rep. Marlin Stutzman of Indiana and Rep. Cory Mills of Florida visited the Damascus suburb of Jobar, the site of a historic synagogue that was heavily damaged and looted in the civil war, and the Christian neighborhood of Bab Touma, where they met with Christian religious leaders. They also were set to meet al-Sharaa and other government officials.

The Trump administration has yet to officially recognize the current Syrian government, led by al-Sharaa, an Islamist former insurgent who led a lightning offensive that toppled Assad. Washington has not yet lifted harsh sanctions that were imposed during Assad’s rule.

Mills, who sits on the House Foreign Affairs Committee, told The Associated Press that it was “very important to come here to be able to see it for myself, to be with various governmental bodies, to look at the needs of the Syrian people, to look at the needs for the nation for stability.”

Mills said he expected discussions with al-Sharaa to include the issue of sanctions, as well as the government’s priorities and the need for the transitional administration to move toward a “democratically elected society.”

“Ultimately, it’s going to be the president’s decision” to lift sanctions or not, he said, although “Congress can advise.”

The Congress members came at the invitation of the Syrian American Alliance for Peace and Prosperity, a nonprofit based in Indiana that describes its mission as fostering “a sustainable political, economic, and social partnership between the people of Syria and the United States.”

Syrian Minister of Social Affairs and Labor Hind Kabawat, the only woman and only Christian serving in the transitional government, joined the congressional team on a visit to Bab Touma, which she said was “very important” to Syrians.

The U.S. State Department, meanwhile, issued a statement Friday reiterating its warning against U.S. citizens visiting Syria. The statement said the State Department “is tracking credible information related to potential imminent attacks, including locations frequented by tourists.”

The Palestinian official news agency Wafa said that Abbas’s visit, his first since 2007, was “aimed at strengthening Palestinian-Syrian relations and discussing pressing regional developments.”

Abbas and al-Sharaa discussed the ongoing war in Gaza and international efforts to move forward long-stalled efforts to reach a two-state solution to the to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and “agreed to form joint committees aimed at enhancing bilateral cooperation across multiple sectors,” it said.

Syria has a population of about 450,000 Palestinian refugees. The Yarmouk refugee camp outside Damascus was once widely considered the capital of the Palestinian diaspora before it was largely destroyed in the war.

Palestinian refugees in Syria have never been given citizenship, ostensibly to preserve their right to go back to the homes they fled or were forced from during the 1948 creation of the state of Israel. But in contrast to neighboring Lebanon, where Palestinians are banned from owning property or working in many professions, in Syria, Palestinians historically had all the rights of citizens except the right to vote and run for office.

Syria does not have diplomatic relations with Israel. While the new Syrian authorities have said publicly that they are not interested in entering a conflict with Israel, the Israeli government regards the Islamist former insurgents now in power in Damascus with suspicion.

Israeli forces seized a U.N.-patrolled buffer zone inside Syria after the rebels toppled Assad and have launched an extensive series of airstrikes on military facilities in Syria. Israeli officials have said that they will not allow the new Syrian military south of Damascus.

Abbas’ arrival in Damascus was delayed after Israeli authorities denied permission for a helicopter to land in Ramallah that was supposed to arrive from Jordan to take the Palestinian president, said a Palestinian official who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to comment publicly. Israeli officials did not respond to a request for comment on the incident.

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Sewell reported from Beirut.

In this photo released by the Syrian Presidency press office, Syrian President Ahmad al-Sharaa, right, meets with Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas in Damascus, Syria, Friday, April 18, 2025. (Syrian Presidency press office via AP)

In this photo released by the Syrian Presidency press office, Syrian President Ahmad al-Sharaa, right, shakes hands with Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas in Damascus, Syria, Friday, April 18, 2025. (Syrian Presidency press office via AP)

Accompanied by unidentified members of the delegation, U.S. congressman Cory Mills (R-FL), second from right, walks in the Old City of Damascus Friday, April 18, 2025. Mills is in Damascus in an unofficial visit organized by a Syrian-American nonprofit, the first visit by U.S. legislators since the fall of former Syrian President Bashar Assad in December.(AP Photo/Omar Sanadiki)

Accompanied by unidentified members of the delegation, U.S. congressman Cory Mills (R-FL), second from right, walks in the Old City of Damascus Friday, April 18, 2025. Mills is in Damascus in an unofficial visit organized by a Syrian-American nonprofit, the first visit by U.S. legislators since the fall of former Syrian President Bashar Assad in December.(AP Photo/Omar Sanadiki)

U.S. congressmen Cory Mills (R-FL), left, and Martin Stutzman (R-IN), second from right, meet Mor Ignatius Aphrem II, a Syrian-American Christian prelate serving as the Patriarch of the Syriac Orthodox Church in Damascus Friday, April 18, 2025. Mills and Stutzman arrived on an unofficial visit organized by a Syrian-American nonprofit, the first visit by U.S. legislators since the fall of former Syrian President Bashar Assad in December.(AP Photo/Omar Sanadiki)

THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AP) — The top United Nations court on Friday wraps a week of hearings on what Israel must do to ensure desperately needed humanitarian aid reaches Palestinians in Gaza and the occupied West Bank.

Last year, the U.N. General Assembly asked the International Court of Justice to give an advisory opinion on Israel’s legal obligations after the country effectively banned the U.N. agency for Palestinian refugees, the main provider of aid to Gaza, from operating.

Experts say the case could have broader ramifications for the United Nations and its missions worldwide.

The hearings are taking place as the humanitarian aid system in Gaza is nearing collapse and ceasefire efforts remain deadlocked. Israel has blocked the entry of food, fuel, medicine and other humanitarian supplies since March 2. It renewed its bombardment on March 18, breaking a ceasefire, and seized large parts of the territory, saying it aims to push Hamas to release more hostages.

Israel denies deliberately targeting civilians and aid staff as part of its war with Hamas and did not attend the hearing. The country did provide a 38-page written submission for the court to consider.

The hearings focused on provision of aid to the Palestinians, but the U.N. court's 15 judges could use their advisory opinion to give legal guidance on the powers of the world body.

“The court has the opportunity to clarify and address questions about the legal immunities of the United Nations,” Mike Becker, an expert on international human rights law at Trinity College Dublin, told The Associated Press.

Advisory opinions issued by the U.N. court are described as “nonbinding” as there are no direct penalties attached to ignoring them. However, the treaty that covers the protections that countries must give to United Nations personnel says that disputes should be resolved through an advisory opinion at the ICJ and the opinion “shall be accepted as decisive by the parties.”

“The oddity of this particular process,” Becker said, “is a clear response to any argument that the opinion is nonbinding.”

The resolution, sponsored by Norway, seeks the ICJ’s guidance on “obligations of Israel … in relation to the presence and activities of the United Nations … to ensure and facilitate the unhindered provision of urgently needed supplies essential to the survival of the Palestinian civilian population.” The United States, Israel’s closest ally, voted against it.

Israel’s ban on the agency, known as UNRWA, which provides aid to Gaza, came into effect in January. The organization has faced increased criticism from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his far-right allies, who claim the group is deeply infiltrated by Hamas. UNRWA rejects that claim.

“We cannot let states pick and choose where the U.N. is going to do its work. This advisory opinion is a very important opportunity to reinforce that,” Becker said.

Whatever the judges decide will have an impact beyond the current situation in Gaza, according to Juliette McIntyre, an expert on international law at the University of South Australia. “Are these immunities absolute or is there wiggle room? This is useful for where United Nations personnel are working in other places,” McIntyre told AP.

An authoritative answer from the World Court can have influence beyond judicial proceedings as well. “Every time a norm is breached, the norm gets weaker. The advisory opinion in this case could push the norm back,” said McIntyre.

In separate proceedings last year, the court issued an unprecedented and sweeping condemnation of Israel’s rule over the occupied Palestinian territories, finding Israel’s presence unlawful and calling for it to end. The ICJ said Israel had no right to sovereignty in the territories, was violating international laws against acquiring territory by force and was impeding Palestinians’ right to self-determination.

According to McIntyre, the arguments presented this week reflect the opinion handed down just nine months ago. “Now the starting premise is that Israel is illegally occupying all of Palestine,” McIntyre said.

On Monday, the Palestinian delegation accused Israel of breaching international law in the occupied territories and applauded the move to bring more proceedings to the court. “Our journey with the international institutions, be it Security Council, the General Assembly or the ICJ, is we are building things block on top of another block while we are marching towards the accomplishment of the inalienable rights of the Palestinian people, including our right to self-determination, statehood, and the right of the refugees,” Palestinian U.N. envoy Riyad Mansour told reporters.

Israel has denied it is in violation of international law and said the proceedings are biased. Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar hit back at the case during a news conference in Jerusalem on Monday. “I accuse UNRWA, I accuse the U.N., I accuse the secretary-general and I accuse all those that weaponized international law and its institutions in order to deprive the most attacked country in the world, Israel, of its most basic right to defend itself,” he said.

The court is expected to take months to deliver its opinion.

—— Associated Press writer Mike Corder in The Hague contributed to this report.

A Palestinian flag flies outside the International Court of Justice, rear, which opened hearings into a United Nations request for an advisory opinion on Israel's obligations to allow humanitarian assistance in Gaza and the West Bank, in The Hague, Netherlands, Monday, April 28, 2025. (AP Photo/Peter Dejong)