Egypt’s foreign minister travelled to Syria to meet President Bashar al-Assad, a rare visit by a senior regional official to Damascus as its Arab neighbours move towards a tentative re-engagement with the regime after this month’s devastating earthquake.
Sameh Shoukry said the trip — the first by an Egyptian foreign minister since the eruption of Syria’s civil war 12 years ago led to the country being ejected from the Arab League — was a show of solidarity after the quake killed 6,000 Syrians and wrought more despair on the conflict-ravaged nation.
The foreign ministers of the United Arab Emirates and Jordan have already visited Syria since the quake, while Assad this month travelled to Oman. The UAE was also the first Arab country to welcome Assad since the civil war when he travelled there a year ago.