Hezbollah-appointed Lebanese official welcomed in Syria in first since fall of Assad regime

Hezbollah-appointed Labor Minister Mohammad Haidar visited Syria on Monday alongside three other Lebanese ministers, marking the first time a Hezbollah official has been formally welcomed in Damascus since the fall of the Assad regime.Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shaibani welcomed the delegation after they crossed through the Masnaa-Jdeidet Yabous border crossing, the same crossing that was closed in April over Israeli allegations that Hezbollah was using it to smuggle weapons.Joining Haidar, Deputy Prime Minister Tarek Mitri, Labor Minister Mohammad Haidar, Education Minister Rima Karameh and Social Development Minister Haneen Sayed traveled for a high-level meeting in Syria to discuss the issue of Syrian refugees in Lebanon, trade agreements and border security, according to the Syrian foreign ministry.Despite Damascus repeatedly accusing Hezbollah of infringing on its sovereignty, alleging as recently as September that cells from the Iran-backed group have planned sabotage attacks, and the fact that Hezbollah backed the former Assad regime, a representative from Hezbollah told L'Orient Today that Damascus was made aware in advance of Haidar's background.“We support anything that strengthens relations between the two countries," the representative said.Lebanese Ambassador to Damascus Henry Kastoun told L'Orient, "The issue of the resurgence of the Islamic State [IS] or of former regime officers who may be in Lebanon is not on the agenda.”Syrian regime members held secret meeting with Hezbollah officialsThough the first official visit, Reuters reported, citing six sources, that members of the new Syrian regime held a secret meeting with Hezbollah officials in Turkey.A Syrian official said Hezbollah's representatives had not given a direct answer on the request to halt arms smuggling and dismantle its Syria-based cells, but did pledge not to interfere in Syria's affairs.

Both Syria and Turkey have denied the report.