Arab League agrees to readmit Syria with immediate effect

Members of the Arab League have agreed on Sunday to readmit Syria into the body with immediate effect, following a vote by its members, consolidating a regional push to normalise ties with the Syrian regime.

The decision will allow Damascus to take part in Arab League meetings immediately following a 12-year absence.

It came after a closed meeting of Arab foreign ministers at the Arab League's headquarters in Cairo.

Syria's membership of the Arab League was suspended in 2011 after a bloody crackdown on peaceful protests against Bashar al-Assad, which led to a devastating civil war, and saw many Arab states pull their envoys out of Damascus.

Recently, several Arab states including Saudi Arabia and Egypt, have re-engaged with the Syrian regime in high-level visits and meetings, though some, including Qatar, remain opposed to full normalisation without a political solution to Syria's conflict.

Arab states have been trying to reach a consensus on whether to invite Assad to an Arab League summit on May 19 in Riyadh to discuss the pace of normalising ties and on what terms Syria could be allowed back.