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Al-Araby
Al-Araby
Bahrain appointed its first ambassador to Damascus on Thursday since it downgraded ties early in the conflict in Syria. The appointment of Waheed Mubarak Sayyar, reported by Bahrain’s state news agency BNA, is part of a diplomatic shift in the Middle East as a growing number of Arab countries revive ties with Bashar al-Assad. Gulf Arab states downgraded or shut missions in Damascus after the Syrian regime used force against the 2011 protests that developed into a war. Bahrain said its embassy, and the Syrian diplomatic mission in Manama, have remained operational. Last month, the United Arab E…