MADRID: Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas is scheduled to meet Thursday in Madrid with Spain’s Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez, in his first visit to the country since it formally recognized a Palestinian state in May.
Abbas is stopping in Madrid at Spain’s invitation before heading to New York for the United Nations General Assembly, according to an official in his office.
Sanchez will meet with Abbas on Thursday, the Spanish premier’s office said Wednesday, but the details of the program for the rest of the Palestinian president’s visit is not yet known.
Abbas is also due to be received by Spain’s King Felipe VI according to the official in his office, but the royal palace, contacted by AFP, has not confirmed this meeting.
His visit comes after Spain, along with Ireland and Norway, on May 28 formally recognized a Palestinian state comprising the Gaza Strip and the West Bank.
Israel condemned their decision, saying it bolsters Hamas, the militant Islamist group that led the October 7 attack on Israel that triggered the war in the Hamas-governed Gaza Strip.
Spain’s leftist government then announced that a first bilateral summit between Spain and Palestine would be held before the end of the year, and the first Palestinian ambassador to Spain presented his credentials on Monday to Spanish King Felipe VI.
Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez has said the recognition of a Palestinian state is “not against anyone, least of all Israel,” but the move led to a further deterioration in ties between the two countries.
He has been one of the most outspoken critics in Europe of Israel’s Gaza offensive since the start of the conflict.
The October 7 attack that sparked the war resulted in the deaths of 1,205 people, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally based on official Israeli figures.
Militants also seized 251 hostages, 97 of whom are still held in Gaza, including 33 the Israeli military says are dead.
Israel’s retaliatory military offensive has so far killed at least 41,226 people in Gaza, according to the health ministry in the Hamas-run territory.
Sanchez vowed this month to continue to “pressure” Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on the global stage over the war in Gaza, especially at the International Criminal Court, which in May requested an arrest warrant for Netanyahu and his defense minister.
Spain, along with other nations, has joined South Africa’s case at the International Court of Justice in which Pretoria has accused Israel of “genocide” in the Gaza Strip.
“We are going to strengthen our ties with the Palestinian state,” Sanchez said, adding that Madrid hoped “to sign several collaboration agreements” with the Palestinian state at the bilateral summit later this year.
Last week, Madrid hosted a gathering of representatives from European and Arab nations to discuss how to advance a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
“The international community must take a decisive step toward a just and lasting peace in the Middle East,” Sanchez said at the time.
Palestinian president in Madrid to thank Spain for support
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Palestinian president in Madrid to thank Spain for support
- Abbas’ visit comes after Spain, along with Ireland and Norway, on May 28 formally recognized a Palestinian state
- First Palestinian ambassador to Spain presented his credentials on Monday to Spanish King Felipe VI
Syria welcomes US House vote to end ‘Caesar Act’ sanctions
- Representatives back defense bill that includes provisions to scrap wide-ranging sanctions imposed on former leader Bashar Assad
- Syria’s new government says vote is ‘pivotal moment’ for country as it attempts to rebuild its economy
LONDON: A vote by the US House of Representatives in favor of ending tough sanctions on Syria was welcomed by Damascus on Thursday as a “pivotal moment.”
The “Caesar Act” sanctions regime was imposed in 2020 against former President Bashar Assad’s government over the human-rights abuses carried out during the civil war.
The move to repeal the sanctions, seen as a crucial step for the Syrian Arab Republic’s economic recovery, is contained in a wide-ranging defense bill that the lower house of Congress backed on Thursday.
The Syrian Foreign Ministry said the vote “paves the way for a broader economic recovery and the return of opportunities long denied to Syrians.”
The ministry described it as a first step toward improving trade flows, and increasing the availability of essential goods, and medical supplies.
The National Defense Authorization Act, or NDAA, will now pass to the US Senate where a vote is expected to be held by the end of the year.
Assad was forced from power a year ago after a rapid military campaign by opposition forces brought the 13-year conflict to an end.
The new president, Ahmad Al-Sharaa, who led the offensive, has made ending Syria’s isolation a priority as he attempts to rebuild the country’s shattered economy.
President Donald Trump said in May that he planned to lift all sanctions on Syria and many have already been removed or suspended.
The Caesar Act, which imposed the toughest restrictions on trade and investment in Syria, requires Congressional approval to be overturned.
Along with repealing the act, the bill requires the White House to provide regular reports confirming that Syria’s government is fighting Daesh militants and upholding religious and ethnic minority rights, Reuters reported.
Syria’s foreign minister, Asaad Al-Shaibani, said the step toward repealing the Caesar Act was a “triumph for justice but also a recognition of the strength and resilience of the Syrian people.”
He said it reflected the success of Syrian diplomacy with the US.
Al-Sharaa has held talks with Trump three times, including an initial meeting in Riyadh in May on the sidelines of a US-GCC summit.
The Syrian president traveled to Washington in September where he was hosted at the White House. Speaking after the meeting, Trump said the US would do “everything we can to make Syria successful.”
During the visit, Syria confirmed that it would join the global coalition against Daesh.
Removing international sanctions on Syria would allow foreign investment to flow into the country, where the cost of rebuilding is estimated to be more than $200 billion.
Syrian Central Bank Gov. Abdulkader Husrieh told Reuters recently that the repeal of US sanctions was “a miracle” and that the economy was growing faster than expected.
The Caesar Act targeted individuals, companies and institutions linked to Assad, and sanctioned foreign entities from funding them.
The legislation was named after a code name given to a Syrian military photographer who smuggled thousands of photos documenting torture and war crimes by the Syrian regime out of the country.
