Bassil-Muallem Meeting Deepens Lebanese Division on ‘Normalization’

Lebanese Foreign Minister Jebran Bassil speaks during a meeting with his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov (not pictured) in Moscow on November 18, 2015. AFP PHOTO / KIRILL KUDRYAVTSEV
Lebanese Foreign Minister Jebran Bassil speaks during a meeting with his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov (not pictured) in Moscow on November 18, 2015. AFP PHOTO / KIRILL KUDRYAVTSEV
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Bassil-Muallem Meeting Deepens Lebanese Division on ‘Normalization’

Lebanese Foreign Minister Jebran Bassil speaks during a meeting with his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov (not pictured) in Moscow on November 18, 2015. AFP PHOTO / KIRILL KUDRYAVTSEV
Lebanese Foreign Minister Jebran Bassil speaks during a meeting with his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov (not pictured) in Moscow on November 18, 2015. AFP PHOTO / KIRILL KUDRYAVTSEV

Lebanese Foreign Affairs Minister Jebran Bassil's meeting with his Syrian counterpart Walid al-Muallem in New York has deepened divisions among Lebanon's politicians and driven sharp criticism from some officials.

Syrian Arab News Agency reported on Friday that the meeting, which had taken place on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly, tackled bilateral ties, including political and economic cooperation, as well as other fields.

“Syrian-Lebanese relations are firm no matter how much some (sides) try to put obstacles in their way,” SANA quoted Muallem as saying.

He also tackled some developments in the field of combating terrorism, the Astana process and the de-escalation zones, stressing that Syria will go ahead in fighting terror.

For his part, Bassil highlighted the importance of relations and coordination between Syria and Lebanon in various fields, SANA said. He pointed out that the positive developments witnessed in the Syrian battlefield and the victories of the Syrian army over terrorism will force those taking a negative stance from Syria to reconsider their position.

Lebanese Forces head Samir Geagea was among the first to react to SANA’s report, saying “When the refugees know that their return depends on coordination with Bashar Assad’s regime, they will not return because it was Assad himself who displaced them.”

High-ranking officials in the Future parliamentary bloc also did not shy away from expressing annoyance from Bassil’s move, although they seemed to express understanding with his step out of their “keenness to their relationship with the Lebanese president and to preserve the government’ stability.”

“What we warned against – falling in the lap of the Syrian regime that is labeled with crimes and eradication of its people – began to come to fruition,” Democratic Gathering MP Akram Chehayeb said in a statement, adding that the Syrian regime is also responsible for the refugee crisis in Lebanon.

“The photo that media outlets are circulating on the meeting with the foreign minister of the criminal regime in Damascus doesn't align with working towards national unity, which we have called for and that we are working for,” Chehayeb added.

Recent calls for the normalization of relations between Lebanon and the Assad regime on several issues have drawn criticism from various sides.



Syria’s Reconciliation Committee Prioritizes Stability after Anger Over Prisoner Releases

Member of the High Committee for National Reconciliation Hassan Soufan and the spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Facebook)
Member of the High Committee for National Reconciliation Hassan Soufan and the spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Facebook)
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Syria’s Reconciliation Committee Prioritizes Stability after Anger Over Prisoner Releases

Member of the High Committee for National Reconciliation Hassan Soufan and the spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Facebook)
Member of the High Committee for National Reconciliation Hassan Soufan and the spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Facebook)

Syria’s High Committee for National Reconciliation has defended recent controversial prisoner releases, saying the decision aims to preserve national stability amid ongoing tensions.

Committee member Hassan Soufan confirmed that several officers recently freed had voluntarily surrendered in 2021 at the Iraqi border and in the Al-Sukhna region, under a formal request for safe conduct.

Speaking at a press conference in Damascus on Tuesday, Soufan addressed public backlash following the releases and acknowledged the deep pain felt by victims’ families.

“We fully understand the anger and grief of the families of martyrs,” he said. “But the current phase requires decisions that can help secure relative stability for the coming period.”

The controversy erupted after the Ministry of Interior announced on Sunday the release of dozens of detainees in Latakia, many of whom were arrested during the “Deterrence of Aggression” operation, which contributed to the fall of the Assad regime.

Among those involved in the mediation effort was Fadi Saqr, a former commander in the regime’s National Defense Forces, who has been accused of war crimes, including involvement in the Tadamon massacre in southern Damascus.

Soufan explained that the released officers had undergone investigation and were found not to have participated in war crimes. “Keeping them imprisoned no longer serves a national interest,” he said. “It has no legal justification.”

He stressed that Syria is in a delicate phase of national reconciliation, in which balancing justice and peace is critical.

“There are two parallel tracks - transitional justice and civil peace - and today, the priority is civil peace, as it lays the groundwork for all other strategic efforts,” he said.

Soufan added that the committee has requested expanded powers from the Syrian president, including the authority to release detainees not proven guilty and to coordinate directly with state institutions.

He insisted that the aim is not to bypass justice, but to prevent further bloodshed. “Vengeance and retribution are not paths to justice,” he said. “They allow real criminals to slip away while deepening divisions.”

While affirming that transitional justice remains essential, Soufan noted that it should focus on top perpetrators of atrocities, not individuals who merely served under the regime. “Justice means accountability for those who planned and carried out major crimes, not blanket punishment.”