Iraqi office for supervising interests in Damascus

The Kuwaiti daily al-Rai al-Am said on Sunday that former director for the office of the Iraqi Foreign Minister Muhammad Saeed al-Sahaf will arrive in Damascus on April 20 to assume his post of office as chairman of the branch supervising Iraqi interests in Damascus.

The paper said the arrival of Muhammad Rifat al-Ani in Damascus to assume his post of office marks the beginning of the first step towards restoring the severed diplomatic relations between Damascus and Baghdad since 1980.

The paper said the consultant at the Iraqi Foreign Ministry, Ghazi Yassin al-Khudr, has been in Damascus since February 10 to arrange the office for supervising Iraqi interests. This office was rented at Abu Rummanneh street in Damascus.