The EU’s foreign affairs chief Kaja Kallas on Monday said she had sent a senior EU diplomat to Damascus to establish contact with rebel groups that took control of the Syrian capital just over a week ago, toppling the Assad regime after more than five decades.
"The aim is to be in contact with the country's new authorities," Ms Kallas said at a media conference after a meeting of the EU's 27 foreign affairs ministers in Brussels, during which they co-ordinated on how to engage with the new leadership in Damascus.
The EU's charge d'affaires to Syria, Michael Ohnmacht, travelled to Damascus as other countries and organisations – including the US, the UK, Turkey, Qatar and the UN – rush to make overtures to the new interim government. Mr Ohnmacht is based in Beirut.
A UK delegation led by Stephen Hickey, director of the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office Middle East and North Africa directorate and Ann Snow, special envoy for Syria, met Ahmad Al Shara, the leader of the group that led the overthrow of the Assad regime, Hayat Tahrir Al Sham (HTS).
HTS governed north-west Syria, an area outside Damascus control since 2015. A UN Security Council terror listing in 2014 was down to its links with Al Qaeda, from which it broke off two years later.
The EU, along with Arab countries, Turkey and the US, wants to see an "inclusive government" that takes into account "minorities and women's rights", Ms Kallas said, two days after attending an international meeting in Jordan about the situation in Syria. "Extremism, Russia and Iran also should not have a place in Syria’s future."
Asked by The National to clarify whether minorities' rights meant government representation or simply the right to exercise one's civil rights, Ms Kallas said: "The leadership is only from one region and that's why it doesn't really represent the whole of Syrian people."
There must be no revenge, no persecution of minorities, and no civil war between various groups, Ms Kallas said.
Hayat Tahrir has sought to ease fears by saying it will protect religious and ethnic minorities in Syria. There have been no reports of those groups suffering at the hands of Syria's new rulers.
The EU is waiting to see "positive steps" and not just words from HTS, Ms Kallas said. Only then will the bloc consider whether it will lift sanctions against it and the Syrian state, which were adopted after president Bashar Al Assad's repression of peaceful protests in 2011.
"The question I put forward today for the foreign ministers – not to decide today, but to start work on – is whether we are ready to adopt our sanctions policy when we see positive steps; not words, but actual steps and deeds from the new leadership of Syria," Ms Kallas said.
This is a period that involves a certain number of risks
Jean-Noel Barrot,
French Foreign Minister
Earlier in the day, Dutch Foreign Affairs Minister Caspar Veldkamp said that it was too early to lift sanctions against HTS. “We really would like to condition that on an inclusive political transition. Inclusive means also including the rights of minority groups, such as Christian and Kurdish groups, and there are many others,” Mr Veldkamp said.
“I think it’s also important to look at conditionality regarding the Russian military bases in Syria. We want the Russians out.” The Kremlin said on Monday that no final decisions had yet been made on the fate of Russia's military bases in Syria, and that it was in contact with those in charge of the country.
Some EU foreign ministers said they feared an Afghanistan scenario, in which Syria is ruled by extremists, or a Libya scenario, with continuing civil war and state fragmentation.
"What everybody wants is to avoid the mistakes with Libya and Afghanistan, the similar things where there was a vacuum left and therefore we know the trouble with those countries," Ms Kallas said. "When I say that Syria has a hopeful but uncertain future … we need to see that these steps go to the right direction. Because everybody wants stability in Syria."
Some EU countries, such as Italy, have already made contact with HTS. Member of Syria's new interim cabinet held meetings with Arab ambassadors on Tuesday, with Italy the only western country present, according to Italian news agency Ansa. In July, Italy appointed an ambassador to Damascus.
Ministers in Brussels highlighted the need for to enter discussions with HTS on the basis of conditionality. “This is a period that involves a certain number of risks: a risk of fragmentation, of destabilisation of Syria, and an Islamist risk as well,” said France's Jean-Noel Barrot.
He said that the EU should only lift sanctions if HTS implements certain conditions. This includes “a political transition that allows all minorities in Syria to be represented, respect for human rights, respect for women in Syria, the fight against terrorism and extremism”, Mr Barrot said.
Meanwhile, Austrian Foreign Minister Alexander Schallenberg warned against laying out benchmarks with HTS that may ruin negotiations. He called for dialogue to better understand how rebel groups operate and a way forward for a “better and brighter future for the Syrian people”.
“If there are developments in the right direction, we can consider and signal that we are lifting sanctions and taking a step in this direction,” Mr Schallenberg said. “I would warn against saying now that if a, b, c, d, e are not met, then there will be no dialogue. I think that would be the wrong approach in Syria.”
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The specs
AT4 Ultimate, as tested
Engine: 6.2-litre V8
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Transmission: 10-speed automatic
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Pharaoh's curse
British aristocrat Lord Carnarvon, who funded the expedition to find the Tutankhamun tomb, died in a Cairo hotel four months after the crypt was opened.
He had been in poor health for many years after a car crash, and a mosquito bite made worse by a shaving cut led to blood poisoning and pneumonia.
Reports at the time said Lord Carnarvon suffered from “pain as the inflammation affected the nasal passages and eyes”.
Decades later, scientists contended he had died of aspergillosis after inhaling spores of the fungus aspergillus in the tomb, which can lie dormant for months. The fact several others who entered were also found dead withiin a short time led to the myth of the curse.
New schools in Dubai
Anxiety and work stress major factors
Anxiety, work stress and social isolation are all factors in the recogised rise in mental health problems.
A study UAE Ministry of Health researchers published in the summer also cited struggles with weight and illnesses as major contributors.
Its authors analysed a dozen separate UAE studies between 2007 and 2017. Prevalence was often higher in university students, women and in people on low incomes.
One showed 28 per cent of female students at a Dubai university reported symptoms linked to depression. Another in Al Ain found 22.2 per cent of students had depressive symptoms - five times the global average.
It said the country has made strides to address mental health problems but said: “Our review highlights the overall prevalence of depressive symptoms and depression, which may long have been overlooked."
Prof Samir Al Adawi, of the department of behavioural medicine at Sultan Qaboos University in Oman, who was not involved in the study but is a recognised expert in the Gulf, said how mental health is discussed varies significantly between cultures and nationalities.
“The problem we have in the Gulf is the cross-cultural differences and how people articulate emotional distress," said Prof Al Adawi.
“Someone will say that I have physical complaints rather than emotional complaints. This is the major problem with any discussion around depression."
Daniel Bardsley
GAC GS8 Specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4cyl turbo
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More from Rashmee Roshan Lall
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Conflict, drought, famine
Estimates of the number of deaths caused by the famine range from 400,000 to 1 million, according to a document prepared for the UK House of Lords in 2024.
It has been claimed that the policies of the Ethiopian government, which took control after deposing Emperor Haile Selassie in a military-led revolution in 1974, contributed to the scale of the famine.
Dr Miriam Bradley, senior lecturer in humanitarian studies at the University of Manchester, has argued that, by the early 1980s, “several government policies combined to cause, rather than prevent, a famine which lasted from 1983 to 1985. Mengistu’s government imposed Stalinist-model agricultural policies involving forced collectivisation and villagisation [relocation of communities into planned villages].
The West became aware of the catastrophe through a series of BBC News reports by journalist Michael Buerk in October 1984 describing a “biblical famine” and containing graphic images of thousands of people, including children, facing starvation.
Band Aid
Bob Geldof, singer with the Irish rock group The Boomtown Rats, formed Band Aid in response to the horrific images shown in the news broadcasts.
With Midge Ure of the band Ultravox, he wrote the hit charity single Do They Know it’s Christmas in December 1984, featuring a string of high-profile musicians.
Following the single’s success, the idea to stage a rock concert evolved.
Live Aid was a series of simultaneous concerts that took place at Wembley Stadium in London, John F Kennedy Stadium in Philadelphia, the US, and at various other venues across the world.
The combined event was broadcast to an estimated worldwide audience of 1.5 billion.
Our legal consultant
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
MATCH INFO
Uefa Champions League final:
Who: Real Madrid v Liverpool
Where: NSC Olimpiyskiy Stadium, Kiev, Ukraine
When: Saturday, May 26, 10.45pm (UAE)
TV: Match on BeIN Sports
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
About Seez
Company name/date started: Seez, set up in September 2015 and the app was released in August 2017
Founder/CEO name(s): Tarek Kabrit, co-founder and chief executive, and Andrew Kabrit, co-founder and chief operating officer
Based in: Dubai, with operations also in Kuwait, Saudi Arabia and Lebanon
Sector: Search engine for car buying, selling and leasing
Size: (employees/revenue): 11; undisclosed
Stage of funding: $1.8 million in seed funding; followed by another $1.5m bridge round - in the process of closing Series A
Investors: Wamda Capital, B&Y and Phoenician Funds
Jebel Ali Dragons 26 Bahrain 23
Dragons
Tries: Hayes, Richards, Cooper
Cons: Love
Pens: Love 3
Bahrain
Tries: Kenny, Crombie, Tantoh
Cons: Phillips
Pens: Phillips 2
6.30pm: Al Maktoum Challenge Round-3 Group 1 (PA) | US$95,000 | (Dirt) 2,000m
7.05pm: Meydan Classic Listed (TB) ) | $175,000) | (Turf) 1,600m
7.40pm: Handicap (TB) ) | $135,000 ) | (D) 1,600m
8.15pm: Nad Al Sheba Trophy Group 3 (TB) ) | $300,000) | (T) 2,810m
8.50pm: Curlin Handicap Listed (TB)) | $160,000) | (D) 2,000m
9.25pm: Handicap (TB)) | $175,000) | (T) 1,400m
10pm: Handicap (TB) ) | $135,000 ) | (T) 2,000m
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
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Volvo ES90 Specs
Engine: Electric single motor (96kW), twin motor (106kW) and twin motor performance (106kW)
Power: 333hp, 449hp, 680hp
Torque: 480Nm, 670Nm, 870Nm
On sale: Later in 2025 or early 2026, depending on region
Price: Exact regional pricing TBA
Specs
Engine: Electric motor generating 54.2kWh (Cooper SE and Aceman SE), 64.6kW (Countryman All4 SE)
Power: 218hp (Cooper and Aceman), 313hp (Countryman)
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Price: From Dh158,000 (Cooper), Dh168,000 (Aceman), Dh190,000 (Countryman)
Ferrari 12Cilindri specs
Engine: naturally aspirated 6.5-liter V12
Power: 819hp
Torque: 678Nm at 7,250rpm
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Suggested picnic spots
Abu Dhabi
Umm Al Emarat Park
Yas Gateway Park
Delma Park
Al Bateen beach
Saadiyaat beach
The Corniche
Zayed Sports City
Dubai
Kite Beach
Zabeel Park
Al Nahda Pond Park
Mushrif Park
Safa Park
Al Mamzar Beach Park
Al Qudrah Lakes
North Pole stats
Distance covered: 160km
Temperature: -40°C
Weight of equipment: 45kg
Altitude (metres above sea level): 0
Terrain: Ice rock
South Pole stats
Distance covered: 130km
Temperature: -50°C
Weight of equipment: 50kg
Altitude (metres above sea level): 3,300
Terrain: Flat ice
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