JEDDAH, 9 January 2006 — Syrian President Bashar Assad flew into Jeddah yesterday and held unscheduled talks with Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah.
The two leaders discussed recent developments in the area and bilateral relations, the Saudi Press Agency said. King Abdullah and President Bashar also discussed the situation in occupied Palestine. They renewed their call for Israel to withdraw from all occupied Palestinian land and to grant Palestinians an independent state with Jerusalem as its capital.
The leaders also called for an immediate Israeli withdrawal from the occupied Golan Heights and the Shebaa Farm in Lebanon, as stipulated under an Arab peace initiative approved in Beirut in 2002.
They also called for the return of peace in Iraq and maintaining its unity.
King Abdullah stressed on the importance of strengthening Syrian-Lebanese relations to protect the interest of both countries and maintain the security of the region.
Foreign Minister Prince Saud Al-Faisal, who arrived in Damascus earlier in the day, met with Bashar and Foreign Minister Farouk Shara. He said he had traveled to Syria to prepare for Bashar’s Saudi visit.
