Syria’s new administration leader meets UN refugee agency chief

Syria's new administration leader Ahmed al-Sharaa met in Damascus on Saturday with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, Filippo Grandi.

The state news agency SANA said the meeting was also attended by Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad Al-Shaibani, without giving details about the content of their talks.

In a previous interview, Sharaa predicted that most Syrian citizens abroad would return to their country within two years.

Since Syrian factions ousted the Bashar al-Assad regime on Dec. 8, refugees have begun to return to Syria from abroad.

Assad, Syria's leader for nearly 25 years, fled to Russia after anti-regime groups took control of Damascus on Dec. 8, ending his family's decades-long rule.

Since then, many countries worldwide, including Türkiye, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Kuwait, the United Arab Emirates, and Jordan, launched relief and aid campaigns for the Syrian people.