Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani said on Friday that he had called for a moratorium on EU sanctions on Syria for six months or one year, but that a final decision could only come from the entire bloc.

Syria's new leader Ahmed al-Sharaa told visiting Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani on Friday that he was ready to stem "illegal immigration" to Europe, the European diplomat said."Sharaa says he is ready to block illegal immigration,

Italy has signalled its willingness to act as a bridge-builder between Syria and the European Union after the fall of long-term ruler Bashar al-Assad. "Italy is ready to play its part in promoting the reform process in Syria,

Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani is travelling to Syria on Friday to encourage the country’s transition following the ouster of President Bashar Assad by Islamist insurgents, and said Europe should review its sanctions on Damascus now that the political situation has changed.

DAMASCUS, Jan. 10 (Xinhua) -- Syria's interim Foreign Minister Asaad Hassan al-Shibani on Friday reaffirmed his government's commitment to guaranteeing freedom for all Syrians, stressing the rule of law and equal citizenship are cornerstones of the nation's future.

Italy's foreign minister has arrived in Damascus for talks with de facto leader Ahmed al-Sharaa following a series of visits by EU officials

In this photo released by the Syrian official news agency SANA, Syria's de facto leader Ahmad al-Sharaa, formerly known as Abu Mohammed al-Golani, right, meets with Italian foreign minister Antonio

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken agreed Thursday in talks in Rome with European counterparts on the need to encourage stability in Syria, officials said, as Turkey threatens Kurdish forces in the war-torn country.

Israel’s military says it carried out new airstrikes in Yemen against what it said were Houthi rebel targets. Its statement Friday said fighter jets struck “on the western coast and inland Yemen,” a day after the Houthis launched three drones at Israel.

The Vatican has approved new guidelines from Italian bishops that allow gay men to enter seminaries as long as they abstain from sex, in an unexpected adjustment to how the global Catholic Church considers possible future priests.

Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani has held talks with Syria’s new rulers and called for talks on easing European Union sanctions imposed on the previous government of Bashar al-Assad. Tajani met Syria’s de facto leader Ahmed al-Sharaa in Damascus on Friday,