📰 UN Security Council makes first-ever visit to Syria a year after Assad’s fall

QAMISHLI, Syria (North Press) – A United Nations Security Council (UNSC) delegation arrived on Thursday in Syria in the Council’s first visit to the country since the UN’s founding, Syrian state media declared. The trip comes just days before the first anniversary of the ousting of former leader Bashar al-Assad and is viewed as a significant step in reshaping relations between the UN and Syria’s emerging authorities. The delegation entered through the Jdeidet Yabus border crossing with Lebanon and is scheduled to meet senior Syrian authorities and representatives of civil society, as per the state-run SANA news agency. Shortly after arrival, the diplomats toured the heavily damaged Damascus suburb of Jobar, one of the areas most devastated during the 14-year crisis.

The Security Council envoys are expected to meet leader Ahmad al-Sharaa, whose troops led the December 2024 offensive that removed Assad from power. The delegation will also travel to Lebanon on Friday and Saturday for meetings related to the fragile year-old ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah. As part of efforts to reestablish its presence in Syria, the UN recently lifted sanctions on al-Sharaa. The organization has urged the emerging authorities to ensure an inclusive political transition in a country fractured along ethnic, sectarian, and regional lines.

Slovenian Ambassador Samuel Žbogar, whose country holds the rotating Security Council presidency, stated earlier this week that the visit marks “the first official Security Council visit to the Middle East in six years, the first visit to Syria ever. ” He described the timing as vital for both Syria and Lebanon. Žbogar noted that trust between the UN and Damascus remains strained. “There’s still a bit of lack of trust in the UN–Syria relationship, which we try to bridge with this visit,” he stated. He added that the delegation will also convey expectations regarding Syria’s political inclusivity and counterterrorism efforts. Additionally, the visit comes one year after troops led by Ahmad al-Sharaa toppled Bashar al-Assad, ending nearly 14 years of civil war marked by mass displacement, widespread destruction, and deep political fragmentation. The transitional administration has struggled to rebuild institutions and restore services, while the UN has sought to renew its role in Syria after years of limited access and strained relations with Damascus.

The Security Council’s engagement also intersects with regional volatility, including a fragile ceasefire in Lebanon and ongoing disputes over reconstruction, governance, and international oversight in post-crisis Syria. By Jwan Shekaki