Iraqi-Syrian Meeting Discusses Humanitarian Conditions in al-Hol

The meeting of the Iraqi and Syrian foreign ministers in New York (Iraqi News Agency)
The meeting of the Iraqi and Syrian foreign ministers in New York (Iraqi News Agency)
TT

Iraqi-Syrian Meeting Discusses Humanitarian Conditions in al-Hol

The meeting of the Iraqi and Syrian foreign ministers in New York (Iraqi News Agency)
The meeting of the Iraqi and Syrian foreign ministers in New York (Iraqi News Agency)

Iraqi Foreign Minister Fouad Hussein has discussed in New York with his Syrian counterpart Faisal Mekdad the bilateral ties and the humanitarian conditions at al-Hol camp in Syria.

In a statement, the Iraqi Ministry of Foreign Affairs revealed that both sides discussed means to bolster joint cooperation in a manner that guarantees security and safety in the two countries and in the region, in general.

Hussein stressed the significance of bilateral ties and called for abstaining from interfering in other countries’ affairs.

The Iraqi FM called for addressing the humanitarian situation at al-Hol camp and preventing ISIS from breaking through the camps of the displaced.

For his part, the Syrian FM praised Iraq’s stances towards the Syrian crisis and in supporting a peaceful solution to it.

He expressed his government’s hope to boost bilateral ties between Iraq and Syria, the Iraqi News Agency reported.

Meanwhile, Iraqi government sources affirmed that there are thousands of innocent families at al-Hol camp and returning them to Iraq has become a humanitarian duty.

Yet, some Iraqi parties reject this proposal and see that these families belong to ISIS.

Dr. Moataz Mohieddine, strategic expert on armed groups, told Asharq Al-Awsat that al-Hol camp hosts tens of thousands of the displaced. A great number of them are Iraqi women and children.

Al-Hol camp is currently home to more than 40,000 Iraqis and around 10,000 families of different nationalities.



Syria’s Al-Sharaa Says No to Arms Outside State Control

Syria's new leader Ahmed al-Sharaa (C) arrives for a meeing with visiting Druze officials from Lebanon's Progressive Socialist Party (PSP) in Damascus on December 22, 2024. (Photo by AFP)
Syria's new leader Ahmed al-Sharaa (C) arrives for a meeing with visiting Druze officials from Lebanon's Progressive Socialist Party (PSP) in Damascus on December 22, 2024. (Photo by AFP)
TT

Syria’s Al-Sharaa Says No to Arms Outside State Control

Syria's new leader Ahmed al-Sharaa (C) arrives for a meeing with visiting Druze officials from Lebanon's Progressive Socialist Party (PSP) in Damascus on December 22, 2024. (Photo by AFP)
Syria's new leader Ahmed al-Sharaa (C) arrives for a meeing with visiting Druze officials from Lebanon's Progressive Socialist Party (PSP) in Damascus on December 22, 2024. (Photo by AFP)

Syria's de facto leader Ahmed al-Sharaa said his administration would announce the new structure of the defense ministry and military within days.

In a joint press conference with Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan on Sunday, al-Sharaa said that his administration would not allow for arms outside the control of the state.

An official source told Reuters on Saturday that Murhaf Abu Qasra, a leading figure in the insurgency that toppled Bashar al-Assad two weeks ago, had been named as defense minister in the interim government.
Sharaa did not mention the appointment of a new defense minister on Sunday.
Sharaa discussed the form military institutions would take during a meeting with armed factions on Saturday, state news agency SANA said.
Prime Minister Mohammed al-Bashir said last week that the defense ministry would be restructured using former opposition factions and officers who defected from Assad's army.

Earlier Sunday, Lebanon’s Druze leader Walid Jumblatt held talks with al-Sharaa in Damascus.

Jumblatt expressed hope that Lebanese-Syrian relations “will return to normal.”

“Syria was a source of concern and disturbance, and its interference in Lebanese affairs was negative,” al-Sharaa said, referring to the Assad government. “Syria will no longer be a case of negative interference in Lebanon," he added.