France's Macron visits Syria, in first trip by an EU head of state since Assad toppled

AL-MONITOR
Jul 6, 2026
French President Emmanuel Macron visits the Picasso Museum as part of a Franco-Italian summit in Antibes, south of France, June 25, 2026. REUTERS/Manon Cruz/Pool
French President Emmanuel Macron visits the Picasso Museum as part of a Franco-Italian summit in Antibes, south of France, June 25, 2026. REUTERS/Manon Cruz/Pool — Manon Cruz

July 6 (Reuters) - French President Emmanuel Macron landed in Syria on Monday, Syria's state news agency said, in the first visit to Damascus by a European Union head of state since rebels led by President Ahmed al-Sharaa toppled Bashar al-Assad in 2024.

The visit underlines Syria's geopolitical transformation under Sharaa, a former al Qaeda commander who has established close ties with Western and Middle Eastern powers that shunned Assad, as he seeks to rebuild a country shattered by 13 years of war.

(Reporting by Muhammad Al Gebaly and Menna Alaa El Din; Editing by Thomas Perry and Alex Richardson)