The visit by Prime Minister Najib Mikati was the first official trip by the Lebanese leader to meet with the new government of Syria.

Najib Mikati’s visit, the first in 15 years, comes amid pressure in Lebanon to release Islamists imprisoned during the civil war and just after the election of President Joseph Aoun.

Syria's new ruler and Lebanon's prime minister pledged on Saturday to build lasting ties during the first visit by a Lebanese head of government to Damascus since the civil war started in 2011.Prime Minister Najib Mikati's trip came after Islamist-led rebels seized Damascus last month,

Syria's de facto leader Ahmed al-Sharaa met Lebanon's caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati in Damascus on Saturday in a bid to improve long-fraught ties, with the pair focusing on strengthening their shared border.

Syria's new leader Ahmad Sharaa called on Lebanon Saturday to forget about the past "negative" relations resulting from decades of the Assad family's rule.