ROME: Italy’s foreign minister said Sunday an “armed group” had entered the garden of the Italian ambassador in Damascus and stolen three cars, after militants said they had seized the city.
“This morning an armed group entered the garden of the residence of Italy’s ambassador... they took away three automobiles,” Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani told journalists following a foreign ministry crisis meeting on the Syria situation.
“They were in the garden for a little while, obviously they wanted to check if there were soldiers of Assad there... but neither the ambassador or the (Italian) police who were at the residence were touched,” said Tajani.
He said the ambassador was “safe” and working remotely in a different location.
“The situation is completely under control in a complicated situation of great jubilation, but jubilation in Syria is manifested by shooting in the air, so still complicated,” said Tajani.
Early Sunday, militants announced they had entered Damascus after a lightning offensive against the forces of President Bashar Assad.
Armed group in Syria steals cars from Italy ambassador’s residence: foreign minister
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Armed group in Syria steals cars from Italy ambassador’s residence: foreign minister
- “Neither the ambassador or the (Italian) police who were at the residence were touched,” said Tajani
US makes plans to reopen embassy in Syria after 14 years
- The administration has been considering re-opening the embassy since last year
- Trump told reporters on Friday that Al-Sharaa was “doing a phenomenal job” as president
WASHINGTON: The Trump administration has informed Congress that it intends to proceed with planning for a potential re-opening of the US Embassy in Damascus, Syria, which was shuttered in 2012 during the country’s civil war.
A notice to congressional committees earlier this month, which was obtained by The Associated Press, informed lawmakers of the State Department’s “intent to implement a phased approach to potentially resume embassy operations in Syria.”
The Feb. 10 notification said that spending on the plans would begin in 15 days, or next week, although there was no timeline offered for when they would be complete or when US personnel might return to Damascus on a full-time basis.
The administration has been considering re-opening the embassy since last year, shortly after longtime strongman Bashar Assad was ousted in December 2024, and it has been a priority for President Donald Trump’s ambassador to Turkiye and special envoy for Syria, Tom Barrack.
Barrack has pushed for a deep rapprochement with Syria and its new leadership under former rebel Ahmad Al-Sharaa and has successfully advocated for the lifting of US sanctions and a reintegration of Syria into the regional and international communities.
Trump told reporters on Friday that Al-Sharaa was “doing a phenomenal job” as president. “He’s a rough guy. He’s not a choir boy. A choir boy couldn’t do it,” Trump said. “But Syria’s coming together.”
Last May, Barrack visited Damascus and raised the US flag at the embassy compound, although the embassy was not yet re-opened.
The same day the congressional notification was sent, Barrack lauded Syria’s decision to participate in the coalition that is combating the Daesh militant group, even as the US military has withdrawn from a small, but important, base in the southeast and there remain significant issues between the government and the Kurdish minority.
“Regional solutions, shared responsibility. Syria’s participation in the D-Daesh Coalition meeting in Riyadh marks a new chapter in collective security,” Barrack said.
The embassy re-opening plans are classified and the State Department declined to comment on details beyond confirming that the congressional notification was sent.
However, the department has taken a similar “phased” approach in its plans to re-open the US Embassy in Caracas, Venezuela, following the US military operation that ousted former President Nicolás Maduro in January, with the deployment of temporary staffers who would live in and work out of interim facilities.
