Madrid shuts its embassy in Damascus
Two envoys will be posted at EU delegation to attend Spaniards resident in Syria
Spain has decided to close its embassy in Damascus in protest at the continuing repression by Syrian President Bashar al Assad against opponents to his regime, Foreign Minister José Manuel García-Margallo said Tuesday.
“The embassy could close as early as today (Tuesday),” he told reporters at a breakfast meeting.
To ensure that the estimated 800 Spaniards who are still living in Syria — the majority of them Spanish women married to Syrians — will have some representation, García-Margallo said that Spain will keep two government envoys at the European Union’s delegation office in Damascus.
Spain is joining a growing list of nations that have already shut their embassies, including Britain, France and Canada.
