 After an absence that lasted more than a decade, the Arab League has voted unanimously to re-admit Syria into the organization. Syria would now have the right to occupy any seat in the organization. The United Arab Emirates, where to re-establish ties with Syria in late 2018, has been leading the recent efforts to reintegrate Damascus into the Arab fold. The Arab League suspended Damascus in November 2011, over its crackdown on peaceful protests which began earlier that year and were spiralled into a deadly conflict.