Geagea says normalizing with Assad is normalizing with Iran
Lebanese Forces leader Samir Geagea dubbed Monday a meeting between a delegation of Arab parliamentary leaders and Syrian president Bashar al-Assad as "shameful."
"It is truly shameful to see a delegation of Arab parliamentarians taking advantage of the tragic earthquake to meet Syrian President Bashar al-Assad," Geagea said.
On Sunday, a delegation of Arab parliamentary leaders met with Assad in Damascus, including the speaker of Egypt's parliament, Hanafy al-Gebali.
Assad has been politically isolated in the region since the start of the 12-year civil war in Syria.
While Cairo and Damascus have largely maintained relations during the conflict, the Cairo-based Arab League suspended Syria in 2011 and some other Arab countries have severed ties with it.
But since the earthquake, the Syrian president has received calls and aid from Arab leaders, a momentum analysts say he could leverage to bolster regional support.
Geagea said that Assad has killed more civilians than the earthquake, adding that the people of Syria have and will always belong to the Arab fold, while the Syrian authority, headed by al-Assad, "belongs to the Iranian fold and can never return."
"Whoever normalizes with this authority is normalizing with Iran and not with the Syrian people," Geagea said.
Lawmakers from nine Arab countries including Iraq, Jordan, Palestine, Libya, Egypt, the UAE, Oman and Lebanon made up Sunday's delegation.
Source: Naharnet
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