Syrian foreign minister receives Lebanese delegation for talks on refugee returns

Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shaibani received a Lebanese delegation led by Deputy Prime Minister Tarek Mitri in Damascus on Monday for talks focused on Syrian refugees and ways to facilitate their return.

The meeting was held at Tishreen Palace in the capital and attended by Syrian Higher Education and Scientific Research Minister Marwan al-Halabi, Education Minister Mohammad Abdulrahman Turko and Social Affairs and Labor Minister Hind Kabawat, Syria’s SANA news agency said.

The visit follows previous talks and aims to continue the work of joint committees formed by the two sides to address shared issues, according to SANA.

Bilateral ministerial sessions have begun to discuss issues within each ministry’s area of responsibility and move from general discussions toward practical measures, the agency said.

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The talks also cover administrative, social and educational matters related to the presence of Syrian refugees in Lebanon.

The visit follows talks in Damascus on Oct. 19 between Lebanese Social Affairs Minister Hanin Sayed and her Syrian counterpart Hind Kabawat on refugee returns, child protection and exchanges of expertise in social protection.

Sayed said at the time that around 700,000 Syrians had returned from Lebanon by September 2026, citing UN refugee agency figures, according to SANA.

Sustainable returns require access to housing, schools, services and employment opportunities, she said, while Kabawat called for joint committees and working groups to turn bilateral visits into institutional cooperation.

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