Syrian Political, Economic Delegation in Tehran

The Syrian-Iranian Joint Economic Committee met in Damascus in April. (SANA)
The Syrian-Iranian Joint Economic Committee met in Damascus in April. (SANA)
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Syrian Political, Economic Delegation in Tehran

The Syrian-Iranian Joint Economic Committee met in Damascus in April. (SANA)
The Syrian-Iranian Joint Economic Committee met in Damascus in April. (SANA)

A Syrian political and economic delegation headed by Foreign Minister Faisal al-Miqdad began a visit to Tehran. The visit, which will last for several days, aims to follow up on the agreements signed during Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi’s visit to Syria in May.

In a statement, the Iranian embassy in Damascus said the delegation includes the ministers of Economy and Foreign Trade, Mohammad Samer Al-Khalil, and Communications and Technology, Iyad Al-Khatib.

The visit comes amid news of Iran’s intention to establish an Iranian free zone in central Syria to boost Iranian investments and strengthen economic relations between the two countries.

The meetings of the Joint Economic Committee in Tehran, which will last until the end of this week, will follow up on the implementation of 15 memorandums of understanding that were signed during Raisi’s visit. They cover a variety of sectors, including energy, agriculture, free zones, communications and others.

Iranian Minister of Communications and Information Technology, Issa Zarepour announced last week that Iran will help Syria in the manufacture of communication satellites.

Moreover, the head of the Syrian-Iranian Joint Chamber of Commerce, Fahd Darwish, revealed in press statements a plan to establish an Iranian free zone in central Syria with the aim of “fostering the Iranian investment environment in Syria” and promoting the bilateral economic ties.

“Free zones are among the most important tributaries of the national economy of countries, and a basis for investments and platforms for import and export,” he stated.

The Syrian president and his Iranian counterpart had signed a memorandum of understanding for comprehensive and long-term strategic cooperation, as well as an MoU related to free zones and minutes of a meeting for cooperation in the field of railways and civil aviation.



WHO Sends Over 1 Mln Polio Vaccines to Gaza to Protect Children 

Displaced Palestinians, who fled their houses due to Israeli strikes, look out from a window as they take shelter, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas, in Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip, July 24, 2024. (Reuters)
Displaced Palestinians, who fled their houses due to Israeli strikes, look out from a window as they take shelter, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas, in Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip, July 24, 2024. (Reuters)
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WHO Sends Over 1 Mln Polio Vaccines to Gaza to Protect Children 

Displaced Palestinians, who fled their houses due to Israeli strikes, look out from a window as they take shelter, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas, in Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip, July 24, 2024. (Reuters)
Displaced Palestinians, who fled their houses due to Israeli strikes, look out from a window as they take shelter, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas, in Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip, July 24, 2024. (Reuters)

The World Health Organization is sending more than one million polio vaccines to Gaza to be administered over the coming weeks to prevent children being infected after the virus was detected in sewage samples, its chief said on Friday.

"While no cases of polio have been recorded yet, without immediate action, it is just a matter of time before it reaches the thousands of children who have been left unprotected," Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said in an opinion piece in Britain's The Guardian newspaper.

He wrote that children under five were most at risk from the viral disease, and especially infants under two since normal vaccination campaigns have been disrupted by more than nine months of conflict.

Poliomyelitis, which is spread mainly through the fecal-oral route, is a highly infectious virus that can invade the nervous system and cause paralysis. Cases of polio have declined by 99% worldwide since 1988 thanks to mass vaccination campaigns and efforts continue to eradicate it completely.

Israel's military said on Sunday it would start offering the polio vaccine to soldiers serving in the Gaza Strip after remnants of the virus were found in test samples in the enclave.

Besides polio, the UN reported last week a widespread increase in cases of Hepatitis A, dysentery and gastroenteritis as sanitary conditions deteriorate in Gaza, with sewage spilling into the streets near some camps for displaced people.