US to send new ambassador to Syria

0 Comments | AFP, June, 2009

WASHINGTON (AFP) — The United States will send an ambassador back to Syria after a four-year absence, a US official said Wednesday, as Washington tries to engage with a former foe and revive Arab-Israeli peace talks.

The news comes as Syria's ally Iran, which backs anti-Israeli militant groups in Lebanon and the Palestinian territories, faces its worst domestic unrest since the 1979 Islamic revolution.

"A decision has been made to send an ambassador back to Damascus," a senior State Department official told AFP on the condition of anonymity. "The process, however, will take some time."

The previous administration of president George W. Bush had put relations with Syria on hold in 2005 following the assassination of former Lebanese prime minister Rafiq...