Lawmakers plan Syria visit Monday

AMMAN — A parliamentary delegation will head to Damascus on Monday for meetings with Syrian lawmakers and other senior officials on bilateral cooperation.

A parliamentary source told The Jordan Times that the planned visit was an initiative by some of the eight-member delegation and was not officially designated by the Lower House.

The delegation comprises MPs Tareq Khouri, Khaled Abu Hassan, Qais Ziadin, Awad Zawaideh, Nidal Taani, Andre Hawari, Haitham Ziadin and Mustafa Yaghi.

Most members of the delegation are of pan-Arab nationalist and leftist leanings. 

Stopping short from giving further details, the source said that the delegation will discuss with their Syrian counterparts means to enhance parliamentary cooperation.

Meanwhile, MP Taani has been quoted in local news websites as saying that a meeting might be arranged for the visiting delegation with Syrian President Bashar Assad. 

Taani added that the delegation is expected to meet with the president of the People’s Council of Syria and Foreign Minister Walid Muallem over “means to enhance economic and trade cooperation between the two countries”.