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Mikati Considers Return of Gulf Ambassadors as Prelude to Restoring Full Ties

Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati (NNA)
Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati (NNA)
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Mikati Considers Return of Gulf Ambassadors as Prelude to Restoring Full Ties

Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati (NNA)
Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati (NNA)

Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati considered the return of Gulf ambassadors to Beirut as a prelude to restoring full Gulf-Lebanese relations, his office said on Sunday.

The PM’s statement came while he received a phone call from Saudi Ambassador to Lebanon Walid bin Abdullah Bukhari, who returned to Beirut last week.

Bukhari congratulated Mikati on the advent of the blessed month of Ramadan and invited him to an Iftar he is organizing at the embassy, the office said.

It added that the call was an occasion to confirm the depth of Lebanon’s Arab relations and Mikati’s appreciation of the return of Gulf ambassadors to Lebanon, explaining that the PM considers the move as a prelude to restoring these relations to a full recovery.

Bukhari then praised the PM’s efforts to protect Lebanon at these difficult circumstances and restore Lebanese-Saudi relations.

Meanwhile, Kuwaiti Foreign Minister Sheikh Ahmed Nasser Al-Mohammed Al-Sabah said during a phone call with Mikati on Sunday that Gulf countries are looking forward to the stability, security, and recovery of Lebanon.

The Foreign Minister stressed "ties that unite Kuwait and Lebanon in particular are very solid, and are becoming stronger.”

He affirmed that Kuwait will spare no effort to support Lebanon and help it rise again, and praised the PM’s efforts in consolidating Lebanese-Gulf relations.

The PM thanked Kuwait, the Emir and the government, for their permanent support for Lebanon and for their efforts to restore Lebanese-Gulf ties.

"These efforts are appreciated by all the Lebanese,” Mikati said.

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Report: Western Powers Warn Syria over Foreign Fighters in Army

Hayat Tahrir al-Sham fighters in Damascus. (Reuters)
Hayat Tahrir al-Sham fighters in Damascus. (Reuters)
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Report: Western Powers Warn Syria over Foreign Fighters in Army

Hayat Tahrir al-Sham fighters in Damascus. (Reuters)
Hayat Tahrir al-Sham fighters in Damascus. (Reuters)

US, French and German envoys have warned Syria's new rulers that their appointment of foreign fighters to senior military posts is a security concern and bad for their image as they try to forge ties with foreign states, two sources familiar with the matter said.

The warning from the US, part of Western efforts to get Syria's new leaders to reconsider the move, was delivered in a meeting between US envoy Daniel Rubinstein and Syria's de facto ruler Ahmed al-Sharaa on Wednesday at the presidential palace overlooking Damascus, a US official said.

"These appointments will not help them with their reputation in the US," the official said.

The foreign ministers of France and Germany, Jean-Noel Barrot and Annalena Baerbock, also broached the issue of foreign fighters drafted into the army during their meeting with Sharaa on Jan. 3, an official aware of the talks said.

Reuters reported the appointments on Dec. 30. The envoys' comments on the appointments have not previously been reported.

Sharaa's armed group, Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, led an offensive that ousted former president Bashar al-Assad on Dec. 8 and has since installed a government and disbanded the Assad-era army. It is now making efforts to reconstitute the armed forces.

Late last year, it made nearly 50 appointments including at least six foreign fighters, among them Chinese and central Asian Uyghurs, a Turkish citizen, an Egyptian and a Jordanian, Reuters reported at the time.

Three were given the rank of brigadier-general and at least three others the rank of colonel, a Syrian military source said.

HTS and allied groups have hundreds of foreign fighters in their ranks who came to Syria during the country's 13-year civil war, many of them followers of hardline interpretations of Islam.

Foreign capitals generally view foreign fighters as a key security threat as they suspect that some may seek to carry out attacks in their home countries after gaining experience abroad.

Officials of the new Syrian administration have said foreign fighters made sacrifices to help overthrow Assad and would have a place in Syria, adding they could be granted citizenship.

The Syrian defense ministry did not respond to a request for comment. The German foreign ministry did not comment.

A State Department spokesperson said Washington is in a continuing dialogue with the interim authorities in Damascus.

"Discussions have been constructive and have covered a wide range of domestic and international issues," the spokesperson said, adding there has been "tangible progress on counter-terrorism priorities, including ISIS."

The US official and a Western source said that Damascus explained the appointments of foreign fighters by saying they could not simply be sent back home or abroad where they may face persecution, and it was better to keep them in Syria.

The US official said authorities also explained that these people had helped rid Syria of Assad and some had been in the country for more than 10 years and so were part of society.