CAIRO – The Arab League’s foreign ministers adopted a decision to readmit Syria after more than a decade of suspension on Sunday, consolidating a regional push to normalise ties with President Bashar al-Assad.

The decision was taken at a closed-door meeting of Arab foreign ministers at the Arab League’s headquarters in Cairo, said Mr Gamal Roshdy, a spokesman for the Arab League’s secretary-general.

Syria’s membership in the Arab League was suspended in 2011 after a bloody crackdown on street protests against Mr Assad that led to a devastating civil war, and many Arab states pulled their envoys out of Damascus.

Recently, several Arab states, including Saudi Arabia and Egypt, have re-engaged with Syria in high-level visits and meetings, though some, including Qatar, remain opposed to full normalisation without a political solution to Syria’s conflict.

Arab states have been trying to reach a consensus on whether to invite Mr Assad to an Arab League summit on May 19 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, to discuss the pace of normalising ties and on what terms Syria could be allowed back.

Syria called for Arab states to show “mutual respect” following its readmission to the Arab League.

Arab states should pursue “an effective approach based on mutual respect”, the Syrian Foreign Ministry said in a statement that also stressed the “importance of joint work and dialogue to undertake the challenges facing Arab countries”. REUTERS