Al-Shaibani: Ford’s Visit to Idlib Aimed to Observe the Syrian Experience

ARK News.. Syrian Foreign Minister Assad al-Shaibani confirmed that visits by foreign delegations — including former U.S. Ambassador Robert Ford — were intended to observe and understand the Syrian experience and its evolution.

In a post on the social media platform X, Foreign Minister al-Shibani stated:
"What took place on December 8 is a purely Syrian achievement, the result of the resilience of a people who paid a heavy price for their freedom and dignity, despite the magnitude of the betrayal they faced."

Al-Shaibani clarified that Ford’s visits, like those of other foreign delegations, "were part of a direct effort to observe the Syrian revolutionary experience and its development in the liberated areas, and to better understand its reality and various phases."

Former U.S. Ambassador to Syria Robert Ford sparked widespread controversy after revealing, in a lecture published on the YouTube channel of the Baltimore Council on Foreign Affairs, that he had met with Syria's transitional president, Ahmad al-Sharaa, as part of an unofficial attempt to help shift him from the world of terrorism to the realm of politics.

Ford explained that he had been invited in 2023 by a British conflict-resolution NGO to assist in the rehabilitation process of al-Sharaa. The revelation has prompted mixed reactions.

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