The Gulf state has opposed the Assad regime for the past 13 years, despite last year’s wave of regional normalisation that saw Syria’s return to the Arab League.
Qatar has announced its reopening of its embassy in Syria on Tuesday, marking the first time since severing diplomatic ties with the Bashar Al-Assad regime in 2011 over its violent crackdown on peaceful protesters.
In a statement on Sunday evening, Qatar’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs declared the re-opening of its embassy and the appointment of Khalifa Abdullah Al Mahmoud Al Sharif as its charge d’affaires.
The announcement came after a Qatari delegation travelled to Damascus on the same day to complete the necessary procedures to resume the embassy’s operations.
In a statement to Doha’s state news agency (QNA) on the matter, the official spokesperson of Qatar’s foreign ministry, Majed Al-Ansari, said meetings took place with Syria’s transitional government during their visit.
Al-Ansari added that the Qatari delegation at the meeting reaffirmed the Gulf state’s “full commitment to supporting the Syrian people in achieving their aspirations for security, peace, development, and prosperity”.
“The delegation discussed with the Syrian side ways to enhance the flow of Qatari humanitarian aid and assessed the needs of the Syrian brothers during this important phase,” Al-Ansari explained, as cited by QNA.
The Qatari decision comes a week after the ouster of Assad following a surprise offensive led by opposition group Hayat Tahrir Al-Sham (HTS) that eventually reached regime-controlled Damascus.
Qatar had closed its embassy in Syria in 2011 in response to Assad’s violent crackdown on peaceful pro-democracy protests and was the first to establish an embassy for the opposition in its capital, Doha.
The Gulf state has also maintained its unwavering stance against the Assad regime for the past 13 years, despite last year’s wave of regional normalisation that saw Syria’s return to the Arab League.
In its latest statement, Qatar’s foreign ministry reiterated its “principled stance alongside the Syrian people’s revolution” and its “categorical rejection of the regime’s repressive policies against the Syrian people”.
“The ministry emphasised that the resumption of embassy operations, coinciding with the triumph of the Syrian people’s revolution, reflects the continued firm and supportive position of the State of Qatar towards the Syrian people,” the statement added.
Meanwhile, last week, Qatar launched a humanitarian air bridge to provide Syrians with crucial humanitarian assistance, with deliveries carried out through the Turkish city of Gaziantep and Jordan’s Marka military airport.
