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After Bashir, Iraqi President Salih to visit Syria

SHAFAQNAIraqi President Barham Salih  [1] will make an official visit to Damascus, in his first visit to Syria [2] since the start of the Syrian civil war back in 2011.

An Iraqi diplomatic source told the Arabic service of Russia’s Sputnik news agency on Tuesday that the Barham Salih, Kurdish politician, will depart Baghdad for the Syrian capital “in the coming days.”

Barham Salih, who served as prime minister of Iraqi Kurdistan in 2009-2012, was elected president by the country’s parliament earlier in October.

Commenting on Wednesday, Salih’s office did not deny the report but said the Iraqi president has not yet made arrangements for the visit.

The president’s spokesman Luqman al-Faili said Iraq is in contact with neighbouring countries (for the visit) but no official schedule has been decided, The NewArab reported.

The report came only two days after Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir became the first Arab League leader to visit Damascus.

The two leaders discussed bilateral ties and the “situations and crises faced by many Arab countries”, the Syrian presidency said in a statement, press tv told.

Earlier this month, Lebanese legislator Abdel Rahim Mourad said he had been officially informed by Emirati officials that the United Arab Emirates (UAE) intends to restore diplomatic relations with Syria, and open its embassy in Damascus.

Syria has been gripped by foreign-backed militancy since March 2011. The Syrian government says the Israeli regime and its Western and regional allies are aiding Takfiri terrorist groups wreaking havoc in the country.

 

Read more from Shafaqna: 

PHOTOS: SUDANES PRESIDENT IS FIRST ARAB LEADER TO VISIT SYRIA SINCE WAR BEGAN    [3]