Algeria supports Syria's return to Arab League

Syria was expelled from the 22-member body after civil war broke out in 2011

Syrian Foreign Minister Faisal Mekdad, right, speaks during a joint press conference with Algerian Foreign Minister Ramtane Lamamra in Damascus, Syria, Monday, July 25, 2022. Mr Lamamra on Monday decShow more

Algeria’s foreign minister expressed his country's support for Syria's return to the Arab League during a visit to Damascus on Monday.

Syria, now in its 12th year of civil war, was suspended from the 22-member group after the conflict broke out in 2011 and President Bashar Al Assad's violent crackdown on protests.

“Syria’s absence from the Arab League harms co-operation between Arab countries,” said Algerian Foreign Affairs Minister Ramtane Lamamra at a news conference with his Syrian counterpart Faisal Mekdad.

“Syria is co-ordinating with Algeria and several Arab countries to revisit the status of Syria’s membership in the league," Mr Mekdad said.

The civil war has killed hundreds of thousands of people, displaced half the country’s population and left large parts of Syria destroyed.

But with Mr Assad regaining control over most of the country, thanks to military assistance from allies Iran and Russia, Arab countries have inched towards restoring ties, most notably the UAE and Bahrain.

In October, Jordan's King Abdullah II received a call from Mr Assad, the first between the two leaders in a decade.

Algeria will host the 2022 Arab League summit in November, and the Assad government in Damascus is eager to continue rekindling regional diplomatic relations.

Mr Lamamra also met Mr Assad and delivered a letter from Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboun.