Arab Health Ministers to Hold Urgent Meeting On Covid-19

An Iranian woman wearing a protective mask to prevent contracting a coronavirus walks at Grand Bazaar in Tehran, Iran February 20, 2020. WANA (West Asia News Agency)/Nazanin Tabatabaee via REUTERS
An Iranian woman wearing a protective mask to prevent contracting a coronavirus walks at Grand Bazaar in Tehran, Iran February 20, 2020. WANA (West Asia News Agency)/Nazanin Tabatabaee via REUTERS
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Arab Health Ministers to Hold Urgent Meeting On Covid-19

An Iranian woman wearing a protective mask to prevent contracting a coronavirus walks at Grand Bazaar in Tehran, Iran February 20, 2020. WANA (West Asia News Agency)/Nazanin Tabatabaee via REUTERS
An Iranian woman wearing a protective mask to prevent contracting a coronavirus walks at Grand Bazaar in Tehran, Iran February 20, 2020. WANA (West Asia News Agency)/Nazanin Tabatabaee via REUTERS

The Arab Council of Health Ministers called for an urgent meeting on the level of experts to review plans for monitoring and exchanging experiences on ways to combat the new coronavirus (COVID-19).

In a statement issued following the 53rd regular session of the Arab Council of Health Ministers, held in the Arab League headquarters in Cairo on Thursday, the ministers expressed solidarity with China and its efforts to curb down the effects of the virus.

The urgent expert meeting will take place during the second month of March in Cairo, according to the statement.

The ministers also underlined the importance of implementing World Health Organization (WHO) directives, saying that protection and the wellbeing of citizens in the region was of utmost importance.

“It is necessary to enhance communication between the Arab member states, exchange information and continuous coordination between health organizations and related sectors in the Arab countries, as well as precautionary plans developed by Arab countries to confront this disease,” the statement emphasized.

It added that participants urged Arab nations and organizations to follow up on the latest developments concerning the COVID-19 virus, adding that the Arab League was eager to share information in this regard with complete transparency and credibility.



Syrian Christians Celebrate Christmas in Damascus Amid Tight Security

An aerial picture shows a view of a crowd around a Christmas tree in Damascus on December 25, 2024. (Photo by Bakr ALKASEM / AFP)
An aerial picture shows a view of a crowd around a Christmas tree in Damascus on December 25, 2024. (Photo by Bakr ALKASEM / AFP)
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Syrian Christians Celebrate Christmas in Damascus Amid Tight Security

An aerial picture shows a view of a crowd around a Christmas tree in Damascus on December 25, 2024. (Photo by Bakr ALKASEM / AFP)
An aerial picture shows a view of a crowd around a Christmas tree in Damascus on December 25, 2024. (Photo by Bakr ALKASEM / AFP)

Syrian Christians gathered at churches in the country's capital Damascus on Wednesday amid tight security measures to celebrate their first Christmas after the fall of Bashar al-Assad.

"Today there is a large deployment of security to protect the churches, fearing sabotage, but things are normal," Nicola Yazgi told dpa, while attending a mass in eastern Damascus.

Security forces affiliated with Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), which is now leading Syria's interim government, were deployed outside churches and in the streets in Christian-majority neighborhoods in the capital, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said.

According to the UK-based war monitor, churches across Syria - including in the southern city of al-Sweida, and in the northern cities of Aleppo and Idlib - opened their doors for Christmas celebrations.

Yazgi said he was celebrating two things this year: "Christmas and the victory of the revolution and the fall of the tyrant. We hope that today will be the day of salvation from the era of al-Assad family injustices."

Suad al-Zein, an engineer, also joined the mass in Damascus. She expressed her joy despite the lack of decorations in the streets: "For us, joy is in our hearts."

Civil war broke out in Syria in 2011 following pro-democracy protests against al-Assad's regime.

In late November, HTS and other opposition groups launched a rapid offensive, making major territorial gains before capturing Damascus earlier this month. Al-Assad fled to Russia with his family.

Since then, HTS leader Ahmed al-Sharaa has tried to reassure minorities in Syria, promising moderation and respect for all religious sects.

A group of people burnt a Christmas tree in Hama province on Monday evening, prompting hundreds of protesters to take to the streets in several cities.