Following the review, the Council also decided to delist five persons who have died and one other person. The restrictive measures currently apply to a total of 316 persons and 86 entities, the Council said in a statement. "The designated persons are subject to an asset freeze and EU citizens and companies are forbidden from making funds available to them. Natural persons are additionally subject to a travel ban which prevents them from entering or transiting through EU territories," the statement said. The Council also decided to "prolong the application of the humanitarian exemption introduced in February 2023, in view of the severe humanitarian crisis in Syria, which has been aggravated by the earthquake that hit Turkey and Syria." This decision will ensure the continued and timely delivery of humanitarian assistance and other activities supporting basic human needs, increasing the coherence between EU restrictive measures and those adopted in the UN framework, the statement said. "The Council remains deeply concerned about the situation in Syria. After more than 13 years, the conflict continues to be a source of immense suffering and instability for the Syrian people and the region," the statement said. In this context, the Council also recalled that "the Syrian regime continues to pursue a policy of repression and human rights violations. It is therefore appropriate and necessary to maintain the restrictive measures in place." The Council keeps the situation in Syria under constant review and may decide to renew the sanctions and amend the list of designated persons and entities in light of developments on the ground. The European Union reiterated that the only way to achieve a sustainable peace in Syria is a political solution in line with UN Security Council Resolution 2254 (2015). At the 8th Brussels Conference on "Supporting the future of Syria and the region", which took place on Monday, the EU pledged €2.12 billion for the period 2024-2025. This assistance will support both Syrians inside Syria and those in neighbouring countries, as well as the hosting countries, such as Türkiye, Lebanon, Jordan and Iraq. Syria's war, which has killed nearly half a million people and displaced half of the country's pre-war population of 23 million, began with peaceful protests against the government of President Bashar al-Assad in March 2011. The protests -- part of the Arab Spring uprisings that spread across much of the Middle East that year -- were met with a brutal crackdown, and the uprising quickly escalated into a full-scale civil war, further fueled by the intervention of foreign powers on all sides of the conflict. The conflict was also complicated by the rise of militancy, first by groups linked to al-Qaeda and later by the self-proclaimed Islamic State (IS) group until its defeat in 2019. Read Also: Saudi Arabia appoints new ambassador to Syria after 12 years (Portuguese version)