Syria back in Arab League after years-long suspension

Cairo [Egpyt], May 8: Arab foreign ministers on Sunday adopted a decision readmitting Syria to the Arab League, more than a decade after its membership was suspended, the pan-Arab organization said.
At an emergency meeting in Cairo, the ministers decided on resumption of Syria's participation in the organisation's meetings starting from Sunday, Gamal Roshdy, the spokesman for the Arab League Secretary General, said.
Syria was expelled from the 22-member Arab League in 2011 in protest against the Syrian government's use of excessive military force to quell a pro-democracy uprising that evolved into a civil war.
Syria's readmission comes ahead of a pan-Arab summit, which Saudi Arabia will host on May 19. Arab League head Ahmed Abdul Gheit said Syrian President Bashar al-Assad can participate in the upcoming summit if he wants.
"Starting from this evening, Syria is a full member," Abdul Gheit said at a press conference after the meeting.
He added that the decision to readmit Syria does not mean the country's years-long crisis has come to an end.
"This is an independent Arab decision based on the belief that Arab interests require that the Syrian issue should not be left outside the Arab contribution [to the solution]," AbulGheit said.
The Arab ministers also decided to set up a contact committee composed of Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Jordan, Iraq, Lebanon and the Arab League head, according to a final statement issued after the talks.
The committee will maintain direct contacts with the Syrian government to reach a "comprehensive solution to the crisis addressing all its ramifications," the statement said without elaborating.
In a reaction, the Syrian government called the move "positive" and said it serves Arab interests.
"The stage ahead requires an effective and constructive Arab approach at the bilateral and collective levels based on dialogue, mutual respect and common interests of the Arab nation," the Syrian Foreign Ministry said.
Source: Qatar Tribune