Iraqi and Syrian leaders meet in Qatar, marking a significant first encounter

CAIRO (Reuters) - Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani met on Thursday in Qatar with Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa, the first encounter between the two leaders, Iraqi and Syrian state news agencies reported.

The meeting was brokered by Qatar, with Qatar's Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani present. It came ahead of Sharaa's expected attendance at the Arab Summit in Baghdad on May 17.

In January, Sharaa was named as interim president and pledged to form an inclusive transitional government that would build up Syria's gutted public institutions and run the country until elections, which he said could take up to five years to hold.

Syria issued a constitutional declaration, designed to serve as the foundation for the interim period led by Sharaa. The declaration kept a central role for Islamic law and guaranteed women's rights and freedom of expression.

During Thursday's meeting, al-Sudani called for the beginning of a comprehensive political process and the protection of social, religious, and national diversity in Syria, especially after an attack on Alawites last month.

Hundreds of Alawites were killed in Syria's western coastal region in apparent retribution for a deadly ambush on Syria's new security forces by armed loyalists to toppled Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, an Alawite.

The Iraqi prime minister also stressed the importance of the new Syrian government taking serious steps to combat Islamic State militants.

He said progress made on these issues could help in building growing relations between Baghdad and Damascus.

Both leaders agreed to respect the sovereignty of the two countries and reject all kinds of foreign interference.

(Reporting by Timour Azhari; Writing by Muhammad Al Gebaly; Editing by Rosalba O'Brien)