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Syria’s President Bashar al-Assad is preparing to pay an official visit to Iraq this month or in upcoming May, the Iraqi al-Ghad Press reported on April 4, citing Iraqi political sources.
“The perpetration for the visit are being made by senior Iraqi, Iranian and Lebanese figures in coordination with prominent Syrian officials,” al-Ghad Press quoted one of the sources as saying.
The source said that Iraq’ President, Barham Salih, Prime Minister, Adil Abdul-Mahdi, and Speaker of the Parliament, Mohamed al-Halbousi, are warred that al-Assad visit could anger Washington, that’s rejecting any restorations of relations with the Damascus government.
Iranian forces and local Iraqi armed groups will reportedly protect al-Assad during the upcoming visit. The Iraqi sources claimed that Iranian Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) commander, Qasem Soleimani, is personally overseeing the ongoing perpetration for the visit.
The last few months witnessed an improvement in the already good relations between Iraq and Syria. In mid-March, Chief of Staff of the Iraqi Armed Forces, Othman Al-Ghanimi, visited Damascus, where he held a meeting with his Syria and Iranian counterparts.
The Syrian Presidency Office has not commented on these claims so far. However, it’s well-known that Damascus does not pre-announce al-Assad trips due to security reasons.
