Syrian Foreign Minister Abdel Halim Khaddam conferred Saturday with a six U.S. congressmen who arrived on the first leg of a 10-day, six-nation tour of the Middle East.
The state-run Syrian Arab news agency, SANA, said the talks dealt with ‘the situation in the Arab region and dimensions of the barbaric Zionist invasion against Lebanon.’
The delegation, led by Rep. Nick J. Rahall, D-W.Va., was dispatched by House Speaker Thomas O’Neill with the consent of Secretary of State George Shultz. The group also plans to visit Lebanon, Israel, Egypt, Jordan and Saudi Arabia.
In a telex to Cable News Network, Rahall said the delegation met with Assad for three hours, as well as Foreign Minister Abdel Halim Khaddam. He said the group hopes to meet Sunday in west Beirut with Palestine Liberation Organization leader Yasser Arafat.
