Syria has appointed Nawaf al-Fares as its ambassador to Iraq, Al Jazeera’s correspondent in Damascus reported.

Al-Fares, who was sworn in by Bashar al-Assad, Syria's president, on Tuesday, was the governor of Syria's southwestern province of Quneitra.

He is the first Syrian diplomat to fill the post since the 1980s.

Syria and Iraq restored full diplomatic relations in November 2006, ending a 24-year break that followed charges by the Damascus government that Iraq incited riots in Syria in 1982 by members of the banned Muslim Brotherhood.

Lubaid Abbawi, Iraq's foreign ministry under-secretary, said the appointment will play a significant role in developing bilateral relations and facilitating entry visas to both countries.

Al-Fares is due to begin the job in the next few days.

Bahrain, Kuwait, Jordan and the United Arab Emirates have all named ambassadors to Iraq in the past month.

But because of security concerns, the only Arab ambassador actually posted in Baghdad is the Emirati.