Bou Habib: Separating Any Political Solution from the Issue of Displaced Persons Returning to Their Country

Minister of Foreign Affairs and Emigrants in the caretaker government, Abdullah Bou Habib, met with his Syrian counterpart, Faisal Mekdad, in Bahrain on the sidelines of the Arab League Council meeting at the level of foreign ministers, ahead of the Arab summit slated for this Thursday in Manama. Bou Habib praised the Syrian government's support for the decision to facilitate the return of displaced persons, emphasizing the need to muster international support to separate any political solution from the issue of Syrian displaced persons returning to their homeland. He also highlighted the urgent and effective launch of projects to rehabilitate the essential infrastructure in the devastated Syrian villages to support this return. Bou Habib also met with his Moroccan counterpart, Minister Nasser Bourita, stressing the "historical relationship between the two countries and peoples," and affirmed the "necessity of supporting this relationship by promoting sectoral visits that serve the interests of both peoples." Additionally, Bou Habib met with his Yemeni counterpart, Minister Shai'a Mohsen Al-Zindani. Bou Habib affirmed Lebanon's commitment to international law and international legitimacy, including United Nations resolutions related to Lebanon and the region, stating: "The time has come to implement a just political solution and establish a viable Palestinian state according to the Arab Peace Initiative issued at the Beirut summit in 2002." He noted that this is "the only way to quell the flames of war and destruction."