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New Syria FM to Visit Iran on First Foreign Visit

FILE: Newly-elected Syrian Foreign Minister Faisal Meqdad addresses the media after a meeting at the Geneva Conference on Syria at the United Nations European headquarters in Geneva when he served as Deputy Foreign Minister in February 14, 2014, w REUTERS/Denis Balibouse
FILE: Newly-elected Syrian Foreign Minister Faisal Meqdad addresses the media after a meeting at the Geneva Conference on Syria at the United Nations European headquarters in Geneva when he served as Deputy Foreign Minister in February 14, 2014, w REUTERS/Denis Balibouse
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New Syria FM to Visit Iran on First Foreign Visit

FILE: Newly-elected Syrian Foreign Minister Faisal Meqdad addresses the media after a meeting at the Geneva Conference on Syria at the United Nations European headquarters in Geneva when he served as Deputy Foreign Minister in February 14, 2014, w REUTERS/Denis Balibouse
FILE: Newly-elected Syrian Foreign Minister Faisal Meqdad addresses the media after a meeting at the Geneva Conference on Syria at the United Nations European headquarters in Geneva when he served as Deputy Foreign Minister in February 14, 2014, w REUTERS/Denis Balibouse

Iran's Foreign Ministry said Sunday that newly-appointed Syrian Foreign Minister Faisal Al-Meqdad will visit Tehran Monday.

Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokesman Saeed Khatibzadeh said in a statement that the top Syrian diplomat will meet with his Iranian counterpart and other Iranian officials.

The visit to Tehran marks Meqdad's first foreign trip since his appointment as foreign minister last month after the death of former FM Walid Al-Muallem.

Last month, Zarif called Mekdad to congratulate him on his appointment and underline Iran's wish to preserve its strategic cooperation with Damascus.

Al-Muallem, who had served as Syria’s top diplomat since 2006, passed away on 16 November at the age of 79.

Mekdad, started a career at the Syrian foreign ministry in 1994, and has been deputy foreign minister since 2006. Before that, he served as his country's permanent representative to the UN from 2003 to 2006.

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Gaza's Health Ministry Says the Palestinian Death Toll from the War Has Surpassed 46,000

People search the rubble of a building destroyed in an Israeli strike on the Bureij camp for Palestinian refugees in the central Gaza Strip on January 8, 2025 as the war between Israel and the Palestinian Hamas movement continues. (Photo by Eyad BABA / AFP)
People search the rubble of a building destroyed in an Israeli strike on the Bureij camp for Palestinian refugees in the central Gaza Strip on January 8, 2025 as the war between Israel and the Palestinian Hamas movement continues. (Photo by Eyad BABA / AFP)
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Gaza's Health Ministry Says the Palestinian Death Toll from the War Has Surpassed 46,000

People search the rubble of a building destroyed in an Israeli strike on the Bureij camp for Palestinian refugees in the central Gaza Strip on January 8, 2025 as the war between Israel and the Palestinian Hamas movement continues. (Photo by Eyad BABA / AFP)
People search the rubble of a building destroyed in an Israeli strike on the Bureij camp for Palestinian refugees in the central Gaza Strip on January 8, 2025 as the war between Israel and the Palestinian Hamas movement continues. (Photo by Eyad BABA / AFP)

More than 46,000 Palestinians have been killed in the Israel-Hamas war, Gaza's Health Ministry said Thursday, as the conflict raged into a 16th month with no end in sight.
The ministry said a total of 46,006 Palestinians have been killed and 109,378 wounded. It has said women and children make up more than half the fatalities, but does not say how many of the dead were fighters or civilians, said The Associated Press.
The Israeli military says it has killed over 17,000 militants, without providing evidence. It says it tries to avoid harming civilians and blames Hamas for their deaths because the militants operate in residential areas. Israel has also repeatedly struck what it claims are militants hiding in shelters and hospitals, often killing women and children.
The war began when Hamas-led militants stormed into Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, killing some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and abducting around 250. Some 100 hostages are still inside Gaza. Israeli authorities believe at least a third of them were killed in the initial attack or have died in captivity.
The war has flattened large areas of Gaza and displaced around 90% of its 2.3 million people, with many forced to flee multiple times. Hundreds of thousands are packed into sprawling tent camps along the coast with limited access to food and other essentials.
In recent weeks, Israel and Hamas have appeared to inch closer to an agreement for a ceasefire and the release of hostages. But the indirect talks mediated by the United States, Qatar and Egypt have repeatedly stalled over the past year, and major obstacles remain.