New Syrian flag raised at the UN

Syria's foreign minister on Friday raised his country's new flag at UN headquarters in New York, hailing the move as a "proclamation of a new existence". 

Shaibani raised the three-starred flag and later spoke to the Security Council. "This flag is not a mere symbol, but rather a proclamation of a new existence," he said in his first United Nations speech. He also called for the lifting of all sanctions imposed under the previous government.

Shaibani's visit to the UN comes after Syria's central bank governor and finance minister this week attended spring meetings at the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank, for the first time in more than 20 years.