Syria president visiting Qatar for first time since Assad fall

Syria's new president was travelling to Qatar on Tuesday for his first official visit to the Gulf state, a key backer of the new administration after longtime ruler Bashar al-Assad's ouster, a minister said.

"Today we are accompanying President Ahmed al-Sharaa on his first presidential visit to the country that has stood by Syrians from day one and has never abandoned them," Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shaibani said in a statement on social network X. He accompanied the post with a photo of the Syrian and Qatari flags.

Sharaa's Islamist group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham led the rebel alliance that ousted Assad from power on December 8. His new administration has received support from several countries including key backers Turkey and Qatar, as well as several Arab states.

Qatar was one of the first Arab countries to back the armed rebellion that erupted after Assad's government crushed a peaceful uprising in 2011. Unlike other Arab nations, Doha did not restore diplomatic ties with Syria under Assad.

The new authorities have engaged in a flurry of diplomatic activity since taking power, and Sharaa has visited several Arab countries as well as Turkey.

Qatari Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani visited Damascus in January, becoming the first head of state to visit since Assad's ouster.

Doha has pledged to support the rehabilitation of Syria's infrastructure, and in January announced an agreement to provide Syria with 200 megawatts of power, gradually increasing production.

Qatar was the second country after Turkey to reopen its embassy in Damascus following Assad's overthrow, and has urged the lifting of sanctions.

Sharaa and Shaibani visited the United Arab Emirates on Sunday, meeting Emirati President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, who expressed his country's support for Syria's reconstruction.

Syrian authorities are seeking assistance including from wealthy Gulf states for reconstruction after nearly 14 years of war.