Russia foreign minister calls for Libya ceasefire during first Syria visit since 2012

Russia’s Foreign Minister, Sergey Lavrov, on Monday called for an immediate ceasefire in Libya and said Moscow wanted the conflict to be resolved through dialogue.

Mr Lavrov met Syrian President Bashar Al Assad shortly after landing in Damascus on his first visit since 2012.

Russia has been a close ally of Mr Al Assad in Syria’s devastating nine-year civil war, lending his government vital military, economic and political support.

Russian troops have been fighting alongside Syrian government forces since 2015, and President Vladimir Putin has visited the war-torn country twice, including in January this year.

Mr Lavrov's visit comes amid a severe economic crisis in Syria and the coronavirus pandemic.

The Syrian pro-government Al Watan newspaper reported that a high-ranking Russian delegation, led by Russian Deputy Prime Minister Yury Borisov, arrived in Syria on Sunday.

A briefing was to be held by Mr Lavrov and Syria’s Foreign Minister, Walid Al Muallem, later on Monday.

Syria’s ambassador to Russia, Riad Haddad, said the Russian delegation’s visit was “of special importance, given the political and economic files that will be discussed”.

Mr Haddad said the agenda included progress by a committee discussing possible amendments to the Syrian constitution, western sanctions on Damascus and the fight against terrorism.

Talks between delegates from the government, opposition and society resumed in Geneva late last month, with the sides discussing a possible new constitution for the country.

The UN’s envoy for Syria, Geir Pedersen, has called the talks a prospective “door-opener” to a final resolution of Syria’s long-running conflict.

The pandemic forced a meeting in March to be postponed.

The Details

Kabir Singh

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Directed by: Sandeep Reddy Vanga

Starring: Shahid Kapoor, Kiara Advani, Suresh Oberoi, Soham Majumdar, Arjun Pahwa

Rating: 2.5/5

Wicked: For Good

Director: Jon M Chu

Starring: Ariana Grande, Cynthia Erivo, Jonathan Bailey, Jeff Goldblum, Michelle Yeoh, Ethan Slater

Rating: 4/5

Terror attacks in Paris, November 13, 2015

- At 9.16pm, three suicide attackers killed one person outside the Atade de France during a foootball match between France and Germany- At 9.25pm, three attackers opened fire on restaurants and cafes over 20 minutes, killing 39 people- Shortly after 9.40pm, three other attackers launched a three-hour raid on the Bataclan, in which 1,500 people had gathered to watch a rock concert. In total, 90 people were killed- Salah Abdeslam, the only survivor of the terrorists, did not directly participate in the attacks, thought to be due to a technical glitch in his suicide vest- He fled to Belgium and was involved in attacks on Brussels in March 2016. He is serving a life sentence in France

The biog:

Languages: Arabic, Farsi, Hindi, basic Russian

Favourite food: Pizza

Best food on the road: rice

Favourite colour: silver

Favourite bike: Gold Wing, Honda

Favourite biking destination: Canada

The specs: 2019 GMC Yukon Denali

Price, base: Dh306,500
Engine: 6.2-litre V8
Transmission: 10-speed automatic
Power: 420hp @ 5,600rpm
Torque: 621Nm @ 4,100rpm
Fuel economy, combined: 12.9L / 100km