A diplomatic source told Agence France-Presse on Monday that the transitional Syrian president, Ahmad al-Shara, will not participate in the Arab summit on Saturday in Baghdad, following strong criticism from prominent Iraqi politicians aligned with Iran and their supporters regarding the official invitation to him.
The source stated to AFP: “The transitional president of the Syrian Arab Republic, Ahmad al-Shara, will not attend the 34th Ordinary Arab Summit, scheduled to be held in the Iraqi capital Baghdad on May 17.”
The Arab diplomatic source noted that “Asaad al-Shaibani, the Syrian Foreign Minister, will head his country’s delegation to the summit.”
Since the ousting of Bashar al-Assad, who was a close ally, Baghdad has been cautious in its dealings with Damascus, which in turn hopes to forge a close relationship with its neighbor.
An Iraqi delegation led by Hamid al-Shatri, head of the National Intelligence Service, visited Damascus at the end of last month. The delegation met with al-Shara and government officials to discuss cooperation in security, trade, and counterterrorism.
While Assad’s main support has come from Russia, Iran, and Hezbollah, Iranian-aligned Iraqi armed factions participated in defending his regime during the 13-year war ignited by his bloody crackdown on pro-democracy protests.
These factions, along with their supporters on social media, continue to use strong rhetoric against al-Shara.
Iraqi security sources informed AFP that there is an old arrest warrant against al-Shara in Iraq, dating back to when he was a fighter in al-Qaeda against American forces and their allies, and he was imprisoned in Iraq for years as a result.
Iraq, which has seen relative stability after four decades of conflict and wars, has established “comprehensive security plans” to protect the participants in the summit, according to Abdul Amir al-Shammari, the Iraqi Interior Minister, in an interview with Al-Hadath channel last week.
When asked if Iraq was requested to provide security guarantees for al-Shara’s participation, al-Shammari replied: “No security guarantees were requested from us, and our security measures are comprehensive for everyone… All guests are of equal importance.”
Simultaneously with the summit activities, the Iraqi Interior Ministry announced last Saturday a ban on protests “from May 11 to May 20,” warning that “anyone attempting to protest will be arrested.”
