Syria's Assad makes official visit to UAE.

Syrian President Bashar al-Assad arrived in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) for an official visit, accompanied by his wife Asma al-Assad, as more Arab states signal openness to easing the isolation of Damascus. The UAE has led a shift in the Middle East towards reviving ties with Assad, who held talks in Oman last month on his first foreign trip since the devastating earthquake hit Syria and Turkey, and visited Russia earlier this month. Saudi Arabia has opened the door for possible dialogue with Damascus especially on humanitarian issues, saying Arab consensus was building that isolating Syria was not working.