Arab Leaders Arrive in Jeddah for Arab League Summit, Marking Syria’s Return to the Fold

Syrian President Bashar al-Assad arrived Thursday evening in Saudi Arabia to participate in the upcoming summit of the Arab League, Friday, in Jeddah, to crown his return to his Arab surroundings after more than 11 years of isolation against the background of the ongoing conflict in his country.

The Sirte summit in Libya in 2010 was the last summit that Assad attended before the outbreak of the conflict in 2011, and then the suspension of his country’s membership in the Arab League in the same year. Earlier this month, the Arab countries decided to restore Damascus to its seat in the Arab League Council, and the Syrian government delegations resumed their participation in the preparatory meetings since Monday.

Syrian television said that al-Assad had arrived “at King Abdulaziz International Airport in Jeddah to participate in the work of the thirty-second session of the Arab League Council meeting,” scheduled for Friday.

And the official Saudi Press Agency, “SPA”, reported that he was received at King Abdulaziz International Airport, Deputy Governor of Makkah Al-Mukarramah Region, Prince Badr bin Sultan bin Abdulaziz, Secretary-General of the League of Arab States Ahmed Aboul Gheit, Secretary of Jeddah Governorate, Saleh bin Ali Al-Turki, and Director of Makkah Region Police, Major General Saleh. Al-Jabri and the Undersecretary of Royal Protocols, Fahd Al-Sahil.

The official Saudi news channel, Al-Ekhbariya, broadcast scenes in which Assad appeared as he got off the plane and shook hands with his recipients, smiling.

Lebanese interim Prime Minister Najib Mikati, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi also arrived in Jeddah, where they were received by a number of Saudi officials.

The summit will witness the official return of Syria to the arms of the Arab League after being excluded from it for more than a decade.

Saudi Arabia was among the countries supporting the Syrian opposition that fought Assad’s forces and tried to overthrow his regime during the conflict that claimed the lives of at least half a million people and led to the displacement of half of Syria’s population.

Riyadh has recently led efforts aimed at turning the page on the Syrian conflict and bringing it back to the Arab League.