The war in Syria has devastated much of the country and its people. But president Bashar Al Assad has remained in power, with the help of his foreign allies. There's now another threat facing tens of millions of Syrians. The economy, which has been reduced to a third of its size - has been decimated. Its currency is in freefall and there are shortages of basic goods; while prices have gone up. But Assad might not be able to count on his friends anymore to rebuild his state. New U.S. sanctions now taking effect, punish anyone who does business with his country. It targets politicians, institutions, businesses and those engaged in transactions with the Syrian government. They could be banned from travel, denied access to U.S. markets or even face arrest. It could also affect partners like Russia and Iran, but also those in the Gulf and Europe as well. American officials insist the sanctions will not harm Syrian civilians. So, will these sanctions deny the government of a political victory after years of conflict? And how will Syria's allies react to the new sanctions? Presenter: Sami Zeidan Guests: Joshua Landis - Director of the Center for Middle East Studies at the University of Oklahoma. Ammar Kahf - Executive Director of the Omran Center for Strategic Studies. Alexey Khlebnikov - Middle East Expert at the Russian International Affairs Council. - Subscribe to our channel: aje.io/AJSubscribe - Follow us on Twitter: twitter.com/AJEnglish - Find us on Facebook: www.facebook.com/aljazeera - Check our website: www.aljazeera.com/ #AlJazeeraEnglish #Syria #CaesarAct #InsideStory

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