Apple products, App Store return to Syria amid US sanctions easing

Syria’s Ministry of Communications and Information has made Apple products and its official App Store available again, as Damascus continues efforts to rebuild amid the slow easing of international sanctions  after Assad’s ouster.

Apple’s trade policy now explicitly states that the US Commerce Department now creates a new license exception called Syria Peace and Prosperity, after some sanctions were removed in July.

This means that the Commerce Department has now further authorised certain exports and re-exports to Syria under license exception Consumer Communication Devices (CCD), as well as several other license exceptions.

Most Apple products fall under the US export classification "EAR99" or "5A992.c," categories considered to be of low security sensitivity, facilitating their export to international destinations.

According to Apple’s website, the rule has been effective since 2 September this year. Now, Apple products can now be sold directly through an authorised seller.

Due to sanctions placed on Syria amid the civil war and the weakening of infrastructure in the country, Apple products were scarcely available, with consumers obliged to use VPNs in order to access its App Store or subscribe to related services.

However, Apple maintains that the US State Department has not yet removed Syria from the State Sponsors of Terrorism list, meaning that restrictions remain in place for certain groups or entities within the country, and that trade exemptions do not include dealing with "prohibited users".

Tech content creator Obayda Abu Kwaydar posted a video on his social media page on Wednesday demonstrating how Apple users in the country can now use their device without resorting to a VPN.

Syrians online expressed relief at the development: "Congratulations to Syrians on Apple products entering the country for the first time in history. Of course, under Assad’s days, Syrians used to think these products were science fiction," activist Wisam Zamout said on X.

Last March, Apple replaced the flag used during Bashar al-Assad’s rule with the Syrian independence flag, used by anti-Assad protesters and by the current government.

The new flag appeared when Apple previewed its latest set of emojis as part of iOS 18.4 beta 2 - its software update at the time.

This also comes amid hopes that Syria will see the development of its digital industry after the Communications Ministry launched in May SilkLink - a project in collaboration with global companies aimed at developing optical fibre infrastructure and building a regional internet hub in the county.

Communications Minister Abdeslam Haykal said the project "will place Syria on the digital map of the world as a strategic corridor for data movement between Asia and Europe," during the announcement.

A number of other internal projects are also set to rapidly improve Syria’s digital sector as well as encourage international investment.