Syrian foreign minister visits Beirut after Trump comments about taking on Hezbollah
BEIRUT: Syria’s foreign minister traveled to Beirut on Thursday to meet Lebanese government leaders, in his first visit there since US President Donald Trump raised the possibility of Syrian forces combating Iran-backed Hezbollah in Lebanon.
Syrian President Ahmed Al-Sharaa, however, has previously denied what he called rumors about any Syrian presence entering Lebanon.
The Syrian minister, Asaad Al-Shibani, met Lebanese President Joseph Aoun on his first stop, and then headed for a meeting with the parliament speaker, Nabih Berri, an ally of Hezbollah.
Syria’s new government under former Al-Qaeda commander Sharaa has emerged as a US ally since his forces toppled President Bashar Assad in 2024, and has largely stayed out of the regional war between the US and Israel, and Iran.
