House Foreign Affairs Committee Chair Rep. Brian Mast (R-FL) told Jewish Insider that, after his meeting with Syrian President Ahmad al-Sharaa earlier this week, he’s going to “think about” his skeptical stance on the repeal of sanctions on Syria under the Caesar Civilian Protection Act. 

Mast has previously expressed concerns about lifting the sanctions, a move which the Trump administration supports.

The Senate approved the repeal of the Caesar Act as part of its draft of the 2026 National Defense Authorization Act, but the House has not yet approved similar legislation. Mast would need to approve the Senate proposal for it to be included in the final defense bill. He told The Hill last week that “discussions on Caesar Repeal are ongoing but my concerns should be obvious to anyone following the situation in Syria.”

The House Financial Services Committee voted on a bipartisan basis in July for legislation conditioning the lifting of the sanctions on Syria meeting a series of human rights, anti-corruption and counterterrorism standards.

Asked if the meeting had changed his views on the issue, Mast said that he had read at length about al-Sharaa and his background — al-Sharaa is a former terrorist commander affiliated with ISIS and Al-Qaida — prior to the meeting. Mast is a military veteran who lost his legs to a terrorist bombing in Afghanistan.

“We had a lot of conversation, good conversation,” Mast said. “I asked him very pointedly [to] explain why we’re no longer his enemy. He gave a pretty good answer. Said he was hoping for a noble future for his people, one free of radicalism, fundamentalism … and ISIS. So it was a good answer.”

Opponents of the full repeal effort argue that sanctions should remain on the books to ensure Syrian compliance with U.S. priorities and human rights, particularly in light of the massacres of religious minority groups.