Hundreds of Syrians were released from government prisons after receiving amnesty from President Bashar al-Assad in a move to mark his re-election this week, a monitoring group said.
Iranian Parliament Speaker Ali Larijani underlined the importance of presidential election in Syria, and said a political solution should be sought to the Syrian crisis through the ballot box.
Over 30 countries are due to send their representatives to Iran to participate in a conference on the Syrian crisis, a senior lawmaker announced on Saturday.
Head of the Center for Strategic Research of Iranˈs Expediency Council, Ali-Akbar Velayati said here on Friday that the Syrian presidential elections would strengthen the legitimacy of the countryˈs President Bashar Al-Assad.
Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Marziyeh Afkham dismissed a Wall Street Journal report alleging that the IRGC is recruiting Afghan refugees to fight in Syria, saying the report is "completely baseless" and aimed at "damaging Iran's face in Afghanistan".
In an exclusive interview with Mehr News correspondent, Australian pilgrim to Syria, Father Dave – David Smith – has said that he would go to Syria to do boxing with Syrian children and delight them.
Head of the Strategic Research Center of Iran's Expediency Council Ali Akbar Velayati and visiting New Zealander Undersecretary of Foreign Affairs and Trade Gerard van Bohemen discussed the latest developments in the region, and underlined the need for the exhaustion of all diplomatic capacities to end the 3-year-long bloodshed in Syria.
