Egypt’s FM lands in Damascus

Syrian Minister of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates Faisal Mekdad receives his Egyptian counterpart, Sameh Shoukry in Damascus International Airport on Feb. 27 – SANA
Syrian Minister of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates Faisal Mekdad receives his Egyptian counterpart, Sameh Shoukry in Damascus International Airport on Feb. 27 – SANA

QAMISHLI, Syria (North Press) – Egypt’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Sameh Shoukry has landed in Damascus, Syria’s capital, the Syrian state-run news agency (SANA) said on Monday.

This is the first visit by an Egyptian top official to Damascus since Syria’s conflict erupted in 2011.

Shoukry is scheduled to visit Turkey, too.  

“The visit aims at conveying a solidarity message from the Egyptian people to both the Syrian and Turkish people following the catastrophic earthquake that hit both countries,” the Egyptian Ministry of Foreign Affairs posted on its official Facebook account.  

At dawn on Feb. 6, a 7.8-magnitude earthquake hit northwestern Syria and southern Turkey, killing about 50.000 individuals and injuring much more. The earthquake also caused immense destruction of buildings, trapping thousands under the rubble.

On Sunday, a delegation of the Inter-Parliamentary Union arrived in Damascus to confirm support to Syria and stand by its people in the plight caused by the Feb. 6 earthquake.

Reporting by John Ahmad