A NUMBER of Arab parliament speakers and senior legislators have arrived in Damascus amid attempts by certain countries, above all Iraq, to restore Syria’s membership to the Arab League, more than a decade after it was suspended from the 22-member bloc.
The high-profile lawmakers landed at Damascus International Airport on Sunday and were officially received by Speaker of the People’s Assembly of Syria Hammouda Sabbagh.
‘The atmosphere at the 34th conference of the Arab Inter-Parliamentary Union in the Iraqi capital Baghdad was very positive. It focused on unity among all Arab countries and underlined the need for Syria’s return to the Arab diplomatic fold,’ Sabbagh told reporters.
He added that the visit also stresses the fact that Syria lies at the heart of any joint Arab action to confront current challenges and crises.
Calls to reinstate Syria to the Arab League have been growing since it was suspended from the League following the start of the country’s foreign-sponsored conflict in 2011.
The heads of the Iraqi, Jordanian, Palestinian, Libyan, Egyptian and Emirati parliaments, as well as representatives from Oman and Lebanon, arrived at Damascus International Airport on Sunday.
‘The delegation’s visit to Syria today means a lot to the Syrian people as it indicates the support to the Syrians … who are exposed as a result of the terrorist war and the repercussions of the earthquake,’ Assad said.
‘The visit also affirms that there are effective Arab institutions capable of taking the initiative in various circumstances and moving in the interest of the Arab peoples,’ he said, appreciating the Arab countries’ rapid response to help the Syrian people in the devastating earthquake.
Stressing that the strength of popular institutions comes from the fact that they represent the different spectrums and forms of society, Assad said: ‘This diversity is an opportunity for dialogue and searching for common points of strength to be the basis for joint Arab action.’
Members of the delegation expressed their readiness to provide all possible support to the Syrian people to overcome the ordeal of the earthquake, saying: ‘Syria has never stopped serving the causes of the Arab peoples, and the Syrian people will overcome the effects of the earthquake just as they were able to confront the war and the blockade imposed on the country.’
For his part, Speaker of Egypt’s House of Representatives, Hanafy el-Gebaly, said: ‘We are here in Damascus to show our support for the brotherly nation of Syria, and demonstrate our solidarity with it in the aftermath of the devastating (February 6th) earthquake.
‘We are the same soul. We will stand by the Syrians during the current difficult situation.’
On Saturday, Speaker of the Iraqi Council of Representatives, Mohammed al-Halbousi, called upon ‘all Arab countries, both at parliamentary and state levels, to adopt a final decision on Syria’s return to the Arab diplomatic fold.’
He urged Arab states to help worn-torn Syria perform its Arab, regional, and international role effectively, work diligently for the country’s stability and reconstruction of its badly damaged infrastructure, and assist Syrian refugees to return to their homeland.
Halbousi said their delegation came to Syria on behalf of all members of the Union to voice ‘support and solidarity’ with the Syrian people.
Halbousi praised Syria for having ‘opened its doors to all Arabs at various stages’ and underscored the ‘importance of working at all levels for the return of Damascus to exercise its active role within its Arab surroundings.’
‘We cannot do without Syria and Syria cannot do without its Arab surroundings, which we hope it can return to,’ the president of the Arab Inter-Parliamentary Union said.
‘Syria is facing a difficult situation in the aftermath of the February 6th, devastating earthquake, which claimed thousands of lives and caused severe damage to public and private properties.
‘We should all assume our responsibilities and help Syria overcome the repercussions of the crisis,’ Halbousi said.
Iraqi Foreign Minister Fuad Hussein has also reiterated Baghdad’s support for Syria’s return to the Arab League.
Jordanian Minister of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates Ayman Safadi also described it as necessary for Syria to return to the Arab League.
‘Syria represents the history, glory, and civilization of the Arab world. Its sufferings have been exacerbated after the terrible earthquake disaster.
‘This requires us to send more humanitarian aid to the noble Syrians. We want Syria to be an active and effective member of the Arab League in its decision-making,’ Safadi said.
The Arab League suspended Syria’s membership in November 2011, citing an alleged crackdown by Damascus on opposition protests. Syria has denounced the move as ‘illegal and a violation of the organisation’s charter.’
Syria was one of the six founding members of the Arab League in 1945. In recent months, an increasing number of countries and political parties have called for the reversal of its suspension.
Meanwhile, Syria’s ambassador to Oman, Idris Mayya, said in a television interview that the sixth session of Oman-Syria joint economic and trade commission between the two countries will be held later this year in Muscat. ‘The meeting will focus on exploring available channels for further advancement of bilateral trade relations,’ he said.
‘The last time that Syria-Oman joint economic commission convened was in Damascus in 2010. It stopped its official activities following the outbreak of the Syria conflict. Exchanges of economic, cultural and political delegations between the two countries, however, continued,’ Mayya noted.
Meanwhile, Mayya also met with Syria’s President Bashar al-Assad, who said: ‘We as Arabs need to lay foundations for political relations in the interest of the people,’ and confirmed that Omani Minister of Economy, Said Mohammed al-Saqri, will shortly announce the date for the sixth session of the Oman-Syria joint economic commission.
Last week, al-Assad visited Oman and met with Sultan Haitham bin Tariq Al Said following the devastating earthquake.
Syria’s official news agency SANA reported that Assad and Sultan Haitham held a face-to-face meeting at the Beit al-Baraka royal palace in Seeb, near Muscat, where the Omani king offered his condolences to the Syrian government and nation.
He also stressed his country’s unflinching support for Syria in order to help the country cope with the aftermath of the earthquake and repercussions of the foreign-sponsored militancy as well as the unilateral sanctions imposed by the West on Damascus.
For his part, Assad expressed his gratitude to the Omani monarch, authorities and people for their solidarity with Syria and delivery of humanitarian aid convoys. He also appreciated Oman’s support for Syria in the fight against Takfiri terrorists groups.
Oman was one of the few Arab states to maintain diplomatic ties with Damascus after the breakout of the foreign-backed militancy in Syria in March 2011, in spite of pressure from the United States and other Persian Gulf allies.
Oman was also the first Persian Gulf state to reinstate its envoy to Syria in October 2020 when the late Syrian Foreign Minister Walid al-Muallem accepted the credentials of Oman’s Ambassador Turki bin Mahmood al-Busaidy, appointed to the post by royal decree in March that year.
- Last week, children of the Tala’i al-Baath (Baath Vanguard) organisation staged protests in all schools and in the main squares in all Syrian provinces to demand the lifting of the siege imposed on Syria, and the unjust coercive measures against childhood and humanity.
In Damascus, the children demonstrated outside the United Nations headquarters carrying national flags and banners and calling for the lifting of the siege and sanctions imposed on Syria and its children.
‘Do you know what it means for a child to open their eyes on the world to see war and destruction, to cry out in pain like other children, but he will not find a response to his screams, neither with medicine nor with food?’ the children said in a statement addressed to the UN Secretary-General and the UN Resident Coordinator in Syria.
Head of the organisation, Dr Muhammad Ezzat Arabi Katebi, stated that this is a stand taken by the children of Syria because they are the ones who suffer most from the unjust siege, which affects their daily lives, security, safety and dreams.
The disastrous earthquake hit Turkey and neighbouring Syria on February 6th, killing more than 50,000 in both countries, according to the latest figures which are updated daily.
Syria, already shattered by more than a decade of war and draconian United States sanctions, has reported more than 5,900 deaths since the high-magnitude tremor rattled the northern part of the country.
