On Sunday, Saudi Arabia announced the appointment of a new ambassador to Damascus, marking a continued reconciliation with Syria after years of severed ties due to the Syrian civil war.
State media reported that Faisal bin Saud Al-Mejfel has been named the Kingdom’s ambassador to Syria, as stated by the Saudi Press Agency.
The newly appointed envoy expressed his aspirations to “serve the Kingdom’s interests and strengthen the bilateral bonds between the two brotherly nations.”
This diplomatic advancement follows the reopening of Saudi Arabia’s embassy in Damascus in May 2023, which has been closed since 2012. This reopening occurred after a China-mediated détente between Riyadh and Tehran, which supports the government of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.
Additionally, in May of the previous year, President Assad was welcomed at an Arab League summit in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, after a 13-year hiatus from the regional forum. Following this, a Syrian ambassador took up duties in Riyadh in December, and shortly thereafter, Saudi Arabia dispatched a charge d’affaires to Damascus.
Saudi Arabia initially severed diplomatic relations with President Bashar al-Assad’s regime in response to the intensification of a crackdown on pro-democracy protests in 2011. This escalation led to a conflict that has tragically claimed over 500,000 lives and displaced millions of people.
