Qatar Reopens Embassy In Damascus Syria After 13 Years

Latakia, Syria's condition after the overthrow of the Assad/DOK X regime @SyriaCivivilDef

JAKARTA - Qatar on Saturday officially reopened its embassy in the Syrian capital, Damascus, after nearly 13 years of vacuum.

The Qatari flag was raised at the embassy building which is back in operation in the Syrian capital after the fall of the Assad regime.

Khalid al-Khalid, a local resident, expressed his joy at the reopening of the embassy.

He noted that Qatar is one of the countries that most supports the Syrian revolution.

"I hope other countries will also reopen their embassies," reported ANTARA from Anadolu, Sunday, December 22.

Al-Khalid stressed Syria needed international support, noting: "We want Arab countries to support us."

Another resident named Nour Ghaith also expressed his gratitude for Doha's support for the revolution in Syria.

Ghaith said the reopening of the embassy would contribute to Syria's progress to becoming a safe place, and hoped those who had fled would return.

He was pleased with the reopening of the embassy, as it would help re-develop Syria.

Qatar closed its embassy in Damascus in July 2011, following attacks from supporters of the Bashar al-Assad regime. The attack was a response to coverage of the Syrian Revolution by Qatar-based Al-Jazeera television, which began in March 2011.

Bashar Assad, the Syrian leader for nearly 25 years, fled to Russia after an anti-regime group seized control of Damascus on December 8, as well as ending the Baath Party regime, which has been in power since 1963.

The takeover came after Hayat fighter Tahrir al-Sham seized key cities in a swift attack that lasted less than two weeks.