First Arab Diplomatic Football Tournament launched in Damascus

The first Arab Diplomatic Football Tournament was launched Friday on the field of al-Jalaa Stadium in Damascus, in cooperation among a number of Arab diplomatic missions in Syria, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates, and the General Sports Federation. The opening ceremony included folkloric performances, during which the participating teams performed the songs specialized for each team. The session comes within the framework of consolidating relations between Arab countries in various aspects, including sports. It is also an initiative to enhance mutual Arab understanding and solidarity in a way that reflects positively on everyone, said Ambassador Riad Abbas, Director of the Arab Affairs Department at the Ministry. Tunisian Ambassador Muhammad al-Mahdhabi attached great importance to holding this session in Syria, the country of love and peace, noting the good participation of Arab diplomatic missions, which strengthens the Arab presence in all fields, noting at the same time the necessity o f organizing the tournament during the coming years. The Algerian Ambassador, Kamel Bouchama, voiced his happiness at holding this tournament as sports are a common denominator that must be paid attention to along with its activities expanded, noting the efforts made to make the first edition a success. Eight teams from Tunisia, Algeria, the UAE, Iraq, Libya, Sudan ,Bahrain ,along with Syria are participating in the tournament. They are divided into two groups that play in the first round, with the first team from each group qualifying for the final stage. Source: Syrian Arab News Agency