Al-Assad asks Arab leaders to seize a “historic opportunity” to reshape the Middle East

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By Rafi Berg and David Gritten, BBC News, May 19, 2023, 04:54 GMT

Updated 1 hour ago

photo caption,

Assad received a warm welcome in Saudi Arabia, which has supported the Syrian rebels

Syrian President Bashar al-Assad spoke of a “historic opportunity” for Arab countries to reconfigure their region with “the least amount of foreign interference,” on his first visit to an Arab League summit in more than a decade.

He said that Arab leaders should build on reconciliation before the summit.

Syria was suspended from the organization at the start of the civil war in 2011.

It was readmitted after countries that supported the opposition agreed that Assad’s hold on power was secure.

He told the delegations, “I hope that it will be the beginning of a new phase of Arab action for solidarity among us, for peace in our region, development and prosperity instead of war and destruction.”

“Today is a historic opportunity to rearrange our affairs with the least amount of foreign interference,” he added.

“Unfortunately, there are some in the world and here of you who turn a blind eye to these [prisoner of war] “Cages and annexation are illegal,” he told the delegates.

Assad’s appearance was highly anticipated since Saudi Arabia invited him to attend just last week.

He received a standing ovation, as his Saudi host, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, embraced him. Saudi Arabia has for years supported rebel groups fighting to overthrow President Assad, with money and weapons. But this was curtailed as jihadist groups grew stronger and Assad crushed the rebels after Russia intervened in 2015.

The Secretary-General of the League of Arab States, Ahmed Aboul Gheit, announced, at a meeting of the foreign ministers of the 22 member states, on Wednesday, that he hopes that “Syria’s restoration of its seat will be a prelude to the end of its conflict.”

But not all countries were enthusiastic about returning Syria.

Qatar’s foreign minister said at a press conference in Doha that it had abandoned its opposition only because it did not want to “deviate from the Arab consensus.”

Meanwhile, the United States said it “does not believe that Syria deserves readmission.”

“Our position is clear … we will not normalize relations with the Assad regime and we certainly do not support others doing so either,” foreign ministry spokesman Vedant Patel told reporters.

Ordinary citizens opposed to the government also denounced Syria’s return to the Arab League.

“How many people were killed? How many people were imprisoned? How many people were tortured to death?” Teacher and activist Abdul Kafi al-Hamdo, who was forced to flee his home in the Syrian city of Aleppo, told the BBC’s Newshour programme.

“What happened by allowing Assad to join this meeting of the Arab League is unbelievable and cannot be forgiven by future generations.”

There has been a growing rapprochement between Arab countries and Syria, which accelerated after the devastating earthquake that struck Turkey and northwest Syria in February. In the aftermath of the disaster, the once hostile powers sent humanitarian aid to areas controlled by the Syrian government.

China also brokered a surprise deal in March that saw Saudi Arabia restore diplomatic ties with longtime regional rival Iran, which, along with Russia, has helped Assad’s forces regain control of Syria’s largest city.

However, large parts of the country remain under the control of Turkish-backed rebels, jihadists and Kurdish-led militia fighters backed by the United States.

About half a million people have been killed in the war and half of Syria’s pre-war population of 22 million have been forced to flee their homes. About 6.8 million people are internally displaced, while another 6 million are refugees or asylum-seekers abroad.

Even before the earthquake struck, an estimated 15.3 million people inside Syria were in need of some form of humanitarian assistance – the highest level since the war began.

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