<div style="text-align: justify; "><span style="font-size: 1rem;">China's Xi Jinping will attend the Asian Games opening ceremony in host city Hangzhou and meet Syrian President Bashar al-Assad along with other visiting leaders there, state media said Thursday.</span><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">President Xi "will attend the opening ceremony of the 19th Asian Games in Hangzhou from September 22 to 23, and hold a welcome banquet and bilateral activities for foreign leaders visiting China", state broadcaster CCTV said.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Foreign guests in attendance will include Assad -- on his first visit to China since war erupted in Syria in 2011 -- as well as leaders from ally Cambodia, Kuwait, and Nepal, among others, CCTV said.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">The Games were supposed to take place last September but were postponed because of China's strict zero-Covid regime, before the ruling Communist Party abruptly abandoned the policy.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">The 19th edition of the Games, which were first held in New Delhi in 1951, brings together athletes from 45 countries and territories across Asia and the Middle East. AFP</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify; ">bnbd24/kh</div>