Syria return to Arab League possible: Secretary-General

The Secretary-General of the Arab League said Syria’s return to the organisation is possible before its upcoming summit in Riyadh on 19 May, Anadolu News Agency reports.

Speaking to Egypt’s El-Sharq TV on Wednesday, Aboul Gheit said “there is a specific legal context in the Arab League Charter for Syria’s reinstatement into the Arab League.

“It is within the right of a state or a group of states to request a discussion about the issue of Syria’s re-admission to its position in the Arab League, particularly since Syria was not expelled from the League, but rather had its membership suspended,” he said.

Gheit added that only a “major event” could lead to the delay of Syria’s return to the League, but did not elaborate any further.

Syria was suspended from the 22-state League in 2011 over the regime’s crackdown on protests, which led to a civil war. But several Arab capitals have mended ties with Damascus in recent years.

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