Syria's Assad invited to attend Arab summit in Bahrain

Bahrain's King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa invited Syrian President Bashar al-Assad on Tuesday to attend an annual Arab summit, due on May 16.

Assad received the invitation during a meeting with Bahraini Ambassador in Damascus Waheed Mubarak Sayyar, the Bahraini state news agency BNA reported.

Syria was readmitted to the Arab League last year after more than a decade of suspension.

Assad attended the annual Arab summit in Saudi Arabia in May 2023.

Syria fell into civil war in 2011 when the Assad regime cracked down on pro-democracy protesters.

Hundreds of thousands of victims have since been killed and millions displaced, according to UN estimates.