United Nations sanctions monitors have seen no "active ties" this year between al-Qaida and the Islamist group leading Syria's interim government, an unpublished U.N. report said, a finding that could strengthen an expected U.S. push for removing U.N. sanctions on Syria.

The report, seen on Thursday, is likely to be published this month.

Hay'at Tahrir al-Sham is al-Qaida's former branch in Syria but broke ties in 2016. The group, previously known as al-Nusra Front, led the rebellion that toppled President Bashar Assad in a lightning offensive in December, and HTS leader Ahmed al-Sharaa became Syria's interim president.