US President Donald Trump The United States formally rescinded Sudan's status as a state sponsor of terrorism on Monday, removing the biggest barrier to the African country's access to international lending institutions and economic development, The Washington Post reported this afternoon. Sudan was designated as a state sponsor of terror in 1993 in part for its support of militant Palestinian organizations such as Hamas, as well as for harboring al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden. Less than two years ago, a popular protest movement led to the ouster of Omar al-Bashir, who ruled Sudan for three decades and whose policies often antagonized the United States and Israel.