Syrian leader asks Russian deputy foreign minister to hand over Bashar al-Assad

During talks with Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Bogdanov, Ahmed al-Sharaa, head of the new Syrian administration, asked Russia to extradite ousted President Bashar al-Assad, Reuters reports, citing its sources.

The Russian delegation met with the head of the new Syrian administration yesterday. According to journalists, the Syrian representative demanded the extradition of Assad. Syrian media reported that Damascus wants Moscow to provide compensation, as well as “take into account past mistakes.”

Syria has not yet made an official public demand to Russia regarding Assad. The Russian Foreign Ministry stated that the results of the meeting emphasized the desire to build bilateral multifaceted cooperation between Russia and Syria based on the principles of traditional friendship and mutual respect.