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  Syrian government refuses to discuss Assad’s future

Syrian government refuses to discuss Assad’s future

REUTERS
Published : Mar 23, 2016, 12:30 am IST
Updated : Mar 23, 2016, 12:30 am IST

The fate of President Bas-har al-Assad will play no part in talks to end the Syrian war, the head of the government’s delegation said, leading the UN peace envoy to warn that lack of progress on the i

The fate of President Bas-har al-Assad will play no part in talks to end the Syrian war, the head of the government’s delegation said, leading the UN peace envoy to warn that lack of progress on the issue could threaten a fragile cessation of hostilities. Damascus delegate Bashar al-Jaafari said Mr Assad’s future had “nothing to do” with the negotiations, which entered their second week on Monday, insisting that counter-terrorism efforts remained the priority for the government.

“The (terms of) reference of our talks do not give any indication whatsoever with regard to the issue of the President of the Syrian Arab Republic,” he said when asked about the willingness of the government delegation to engage in serious talks on political transition. “This is something already excluded.”

UN envoy Staffan de Mist-ura, who describes Syria’s political transition as “the mother of all issues”, responded by saying the government delegation’s refusal to discuss it could lead to a deterioration of the situation on the ground.

“Everyone more or less agrees, the cessation of hostilities is still holding,” he said. “The same ... more or less for the movement on humanitarian aid. But neither of them can be sustained if we don’t get progress on the political transition.”

The fragility of the three-week-old cessation, which was backed by the US and Russia, was highlighted on Monday when Moscow said it had recorded six violations in the last 24 hours.

Meanwhile, Syria’s main Opposition said on Tuesday it would not be deterred by Damascus’ refusal to discuss the fate of Mr Assad, and vowed to be patient in the ongoing peace talks. A member of the High Neg-otiations Committee Oppos-ition umbrella group criticised the regime’s lead negotiator in Geneva, Mr al-Jaafari, for using inflammatory rhetoric and blocking progress towards agreement on a political transition in the war-ravaged country.

But Hisham Marwa, who serves as a consultant in the HNC delegation taking part in the talks, said the regime position “will not affect our decision to be engaged in a political process, and to show a higher degree of responsibility and patience.”

On Tuesday, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said a total of 530 people were killed in the first 23 days of a truce in Syria in areas covered by the cessation of hostilities agreement. In areas not covered by the ceasefire, 1,279 people were killed, it said.

Location: Lebanon, Beirut