Lebanon says Syria should get its seat back on the Arab League, even though President Bashar Assad hasn’t fulfilled his promise to stop violence.
Syria was suspended in November 2011. The deal at the time was the country would stay exiled until Mr. Assad ended violence against rebel fighters and protesters, Agence France-Presse reported. In 2012, the Arab League then recognized one of the rebel forces, the Syrian National Coalition, and SNC head Ahmed Moaz al-Khatib as the legitimate voice at the League’s table.
Wednesday, Lebanon Foreign Minister Adnan Mansur said Syria should regain its seat anyway — even though violence continues — because “Arab states failed to resolve the Syrian crisis,” AFP reported.
The United Nations estimates that more than 70,000 have been killed during conflict, which has been waged since March 2011, and pushed another one million into refugee status.
The Arab League is a coalition of 22 nations, including Syria. Its mission is to identify and coordinate Arab policies of importance to its members.
• Cheryl K. Chumley can be reached at cchumley@washingtontimes.com.
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