Iran's Ahmadinejad to visit Syria

AFP - Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad will visit Syria briefly on Saturday where he will meet his Syrian counterpart and close ally Bashar al-Assad, a diplomatic source in Damascus said on Friday.

"The Iranian president will make a short trip to Damascus, during which he will meet the Syrian president to examine the latest developments on the regional and international scene," the source said, requesting anonymity.

Ahmadinejad will then continue on to Algeria, the source added.

Iran's hardline president last visited Syria in late February, when he stressed that relations between the two countries were as "solid" as ever, saying "nothing can damage these relations."

On the eve of the February visit, US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton had underlined Washington's desire to see Syria move away from Iran, on which world powers have since imposed new sanctions for its controversial programme of uranium enrichment.

Assad and Ahmadinejad signed a visa-scrapping accord during the trip, signalling even closer ties and brushing aside US efforts to drive a wedge between the Damascus and Tehran.

During his trip, the Iranian president also met exiled Hamas political leader Khaled Meshaal and Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah.

A Lebanese government source said last week that Ahmadinejad would visit Beirut on October 12, which would be his first visit to Lebanon since taking office five years ago.