Syrian leader Assad invited to COP 28 climate summit in Dubai

Syrian leader Assad invited to COP 28 climate summit in Dubai

The United Arab Emirates has invited Bashar al-Assad to attend the COP 28 climate summit in Dubai, the latest move by countries in the region to rehabilitate the Syrian president but one that is likely to cause discomfort for western leaders and climate advocates.

Syria, which was readmitted to the Arab League this month, received the invite from a UAE representative at its embassy in Damascus on Monday, according to the Syrian state news agency.

The invitation to the gathering later this year will cause disquiet in those countries that have expressed disdain for the pace of reconciliation with the Syrian leader, whose regime was accused of war crimes during the country’s devastating civil war.

It would be his first global summit since before the outbreak of the war in 2011, and it holds the potential for awkward encounters with western leaders who have sanctioned his regime and called for him to be removed.

The holding of the UN climate summit in the UAE has been contentious from the outset, after the appointment of the head of the state-owned oil company, Sultan Al Jaber, as president of COP28, and the inclusion of fossil fuel industry leaders as formal participants.

“COP28 is committed to an inclusive