The Arab League summit will begin today in the Saudi coastal city of Jeddah. Bashar Al-Assad will attend for the first time since 2011, having been suspended for over a decade due to his regime's killing of peaceful protesters.
Twelve years later and 500,000 Syrians have been killed in the war, the vast majority civilians as a result of regime bombing and massacres.
While Saudi Arabia rolls out the purple carpet for Assad - having effectively restored bilateral ties with the Syrian regime - a few other Arab countries are hesitant about making amends, such as Qatar and Kuwait.
The summit is also expected to discuss the ongoing conflicts in Sudan and Yemen.
Throughout the day, The New Arab will be posting updates on the summit, including the arrival of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, and other developments from the region and afar.
Stay tuned for further updates.