Damascus, July 25 (SANA) UN Secretary-General António Guterres met Speaker of Syria’s People’s Assembly Abdul Hamid al-Awak and several senior Syrian officials in Damascus on Saturday as part of his landmark visit to the country.
At Tishreen Palace, Guterres held talks with al-Awak in the presence of the Assembly’s two deputy speakers and its secretary.
The UN chief also met Quneitra Governor Ghassan al-Sayed Ahmad, with Syria’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Ibrahim Olabi, in attendance.
In separate meetings, Guterres held discussions with Abdul Basit Abdul Latif, head of the National Commission for Transitional Justice; Mohammed Reda Jalkhi, head of the National Commission for Missing Persons; Mohammed Taha al-Ahmad, head of the higher Committee for People’s Assembly Elections; and Raghda Zeidan, head of the committee investigating the fate of the sons and daughters of detainees.
Earlier on Saturday, Guterres and the accompanying UN delegation arrived at Damascus International Airport, where they were received by Foreign Minister Asaad Hassan al-Shaibani. The visit marks the first by a UN secretary-general to Syria since 2009.
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