Syrian Deputy Foreign Minister Faisal al-Miqdad (R) shakes hands with Staffan de Mistura, the new UN envoy to Syria, in Damascus, Syria on Sept. 9, 2014. The newly appointed UN envoy to Syria Staffan de Mistura arrived in the Syrian capital Damascus on Tuesday, kicking off his first visit to the war-torn country since he was appointed in July.(Xinhua/ Bassem Tellawi)