Syria's President Bashar al-Assad addresses the new members of parliament in Damascus, Syria in this handout released by SANA on August 12, 2020. SANA/Handout via REUTERS
The Arab League is set to readmit Syria at its meeting of foreign ministers on Sunday, according to a League spokeswoman, cementing a regional campaign to normalize relations with President Bashar al-Assad.
According to Gamal Roshdy, spokesperson for the Arab League’s secretary general, the decision was anticipated to be made during a private meeting of Arab foreign ministers at the Arab League’s headquarters in Cairo.
Syria’s membership of the Arab League was suspended in 2011 after a bloody crackdown on street protests against Assad that led to a devastating civil war, and many Arab states pulled their envoys out of Damascus.
Recently, several Arab states including Saudi Arabia and Egypt, have re-engaged with Syria in high-level visits and meetings, though some, including Qatar, remain opposed to full normalization without a political solution to Syria’s conflict.
Arab states have been trying to reach consensus on whether to invite Assad to an Arab League summit on May 19 in Riyadh to discuss the pace of normalizing ties and on what terms Syria could be allowed back.