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UAE Ambassador to Syria Takes Post in Damascus

President Bashar al-Assad welcoming Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan in Damascus, November 2021. (Syrian Presidency)
President Bashar al-Assad welcoming Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan in Damascus, November 2021. (Syrian Presidency)
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UAE Ambassador to Syria Takes Post in Damascus

President Bashar al-Assad welcoming Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan in Damascus, November 2021. (Syrian Presidency)
President Bashar al-Assad welcoming Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan in Damascus, November 2021. (Syrian Presidency)

The first United Arab Emirates ambassador to Damascus in nearly 13 years took up his post on Tuesday.

Syrian state media said the country’s Foreign Minister Faisal Mekdad received Ambassador Hassan Ahmad al-Shihi’s credentials.

The UAE embassy was reopened in Syria in late 2018 and a charge d’affaires has been in charge of the diplomatic mission since then.

Al-Shihi will be the first UAE ambassador to Syria since 2011.

Al-Shihi served as the UAE's ambassador to Iraq since 2015 and held a previous post as the ambassador to Sudan.

The reopening of the UAE embassy in Syria in December 2018 ended seven years of strained relations following the Arab League's decision to suspend Syria's membership and severe ties with the country.

The UAE is the first Arab country to restore ties with Damascus. In November 2021, Emirati Foreign Minister Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed visited Damascus and met with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.

In March 2023, al-Assad arrived in the UAE for an official visit, accompanied by his wife. Assad held talks with President Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed al-Nahyan, during which they discussed on bilateral ties.

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Gulf

Saudi, Qatari FMs Discuss Regional Developments

Saudi Minister of Foreign Affairs Prince Faisal bin Farhan bin Abdullah and his Qatari counterpart Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani (Asharq Al-Awsat)
Saudi Minister of Foreign Affairs Prince Faisal bin Farhan bin Abdullah and his Qatari counterpart Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani (Asharq Al-Awsat)
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Saudi, Qatari FMs Discuss Regional Developments

Saudi Minister of Foreign Affairs Prince Faisal bin Farhan bin Abdullah and his Qatari counterpart Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani (Asharq Al-Awsat)
Saudi Minister of Foreign Affairs Prince Faisal bin Farhan bin Abdullah and his Qatari counterpart Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani (Asharq Al-Awsat)

Saudi Minister of Foreign Affairs Prince Faisal bin Farhan bin Abdullah received a phone call from Qatari Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani, the Saudi Press Agence (SPA) reported Wednesday.

During the call, they reviewed the latest developments and current situation in the region, in light of the ongoing coordination and consultation between the two countries, SPA said.

Gulf

Kuwait Transfers Arriving Flights to Alternative Airports after ‘Criminal’ Iran Attack

Planes are seen at Kuwait International Airport. (KUNA)
Planes are seen at Kuwait International Airport. (KUNA)
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Kuwait Transfers Arriving Flights to Alternative Airports after ‘Criminal’ Iran Attack

Planes are seen at Kuwait International Airport. (KUNA)
Planes are seen at Kuwait International Airport. (KUNA)

Iran carried out a drone strike on a passenger terminal at Kuwait International Airport, wounding several people and forcing air traffic to be suspended, Kuwaiti officials said on Wednesday.

Ministry of defense spokesman Brigadier General Saud Abdulaziz Al-Atwan described the attack as "criminal Iranian aggression which resulted in significant material damage to the building and injuries."

Al-Atwan, in a social media post, did not say how many people were hurt, but said those wounded had received medical care.

Kuwait's state news agency said civil aviation authorities had suspended traffic and transferred arriving flights to alternative airports after "Terminal One came under Iranian attacks causing casualties and damage".

The Gulf nation has been on the receiving end of Iranian attacks since the United States and Israel attacked Iran and killed its senior leadership in late February.

Gulf

Kuwait Arrests 3 Fugitive Prisoners

The Kuwait City skyline is pictured from across the waterfront along the Gulf in Salimiyah on June 2, 2026. (AFP)
The Kuwait City skyline is pictured from across the waterfront along the Gulf in Salimiyah on June 2, 2026. (AFP)
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Kuwait Arrests 3 Fugitive Prisoners

The Kuwait City skyline is pictured from across the waterfront along the Gulf in Salimiyah on June 2, 2026. (AFP)
The Kuwait City skyline is pictured from across the waterfront along the Gulf in Salimiyah on June 2, 2026. (AFP)

Kuwait’s Interior Ministry announced on Tuesday the arrest of three fugitive prisoners who had escaped a correctional facility.

A statement said they were detained following intense security operations by relevant agencies. Two firearms were found in their possession.

Unofficial accounts on social media said the prisoners had escaped at the early hours of dawn days earlier after creating an opening in an interior wall and crawling through the air ventilation vents.

They headed towards an unused surveillance tower where they used improvised rope, made of clothes fabrics, to climb down the outer wall of the facility and make their escape.

One unofficial account said one of the fugitives headed to his family home to change his clothes and access his vehicle before his mother discovered him.

She quickly informed the authorities, which helped facilitate the search and arrest operations.

Kuwaiti authorities have not released any official statements to confirm these reports.

The Interior Ministry stressed that the security agencies will continue to perform their duties firmly to arrest anyone attempting to violate the law and undermine security and general order.

The safety of society is a top priority, it declared, vowing to take legal measures against anyone proven to have been involved in abetting suspects.