Warring Sides Agree on Basic Principles as Talks Pause
Delegations from the Syrian government and opposition at peace talks in Geneva are expected to agree on Thursday to a document created by U.N. envoy Staffan de Mistura detailing the basic principles of a political solution to Syria’s five-year-long war.
The talks in Geneva are set to adjourn on Thursday after nearly two weeks of discussions. Delegations are scheduled to return to the negotiating table in April.
“Basic principles have been laid out. De Mistura wants to announce that all sides have agreed so that he can move on to the transition issue at the next round,” a senior Western diplomat told Reuters. “It’s a baby step, but a necessary step. It’s not a bad result.”
Speaking on condition of anonymity, the diplomat said the document contains 10-12 points, ranging from agreements on a united national army, the need to fight terrorism, and the guarantee of a democratic non-sectarian state with equal rights for all.
E.U. Foreign Affairs Representative Federica Mogherini made a surprise visit to Geneva on Wednesday, confronting the head of the Syrian government delegation, Bashar Ja’afari, to demand he enter detailed talks on a political transition.
Mogherini was reportedly invited to Geneva by the U.N. envoy to Syria, who is struggling to persuade Bashar al-Assad’s government to begin discussing what a political transition would look like in Syria.
U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry arrived in Moscow on Wednesday to determine whether President Vladimir Putin is ready to discuss ways in which Assad can be removed from power.
Pro-Government Forces Battle ISIS at Gates of Palmyra
Pro-government forces battled Islamic State group (ISIS) militants just outside the ancient city of Palmyra on Thursday, AFP reports.
ISIS has called on civilians in the area to leave, as the Syrian army and pro-government militias press in around the western side of the city, according to the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.
ISIS captured the city known as the “Pearl of the Desert” in May 2015. If the government were to retake the city, it would be both a strategic and symbolic victory for Assad. Whoever controls Palmyra controls the vast expanse of desert extending from central Syria to the Iraqi border.
The pro-government ground offensive, backed by heavy Russian airstrikes, has been slowed due to dense minefields planted by ISIS, which surrounds the city.
A Syrian military source told AFP on Thursday that Syrian troops are now only a couple hundred yards outside the entrance of the city.
Pro-government troops appear to be preparing for their final assault on the city.
“Now the choice is in the hands of Daesh – either they withdraw or they will go to war in the city against the Syrian army,” the military source said, using an Arabic acronym to refer to ISIS. “It is unlikely they will do the latter, because they have already started planting booby traps in the neighborhoods.”
Another anonymous source with knowledge of the fighting in Palmyra told AFP, “There are Russian special forces on the ground, coordinating the operations. They sometimes take part, when necessary.”
U.S.-Led Coalition Airstrikes Have Killed at Least 380 Civilians, Says Monitor
U.S.-led coalition airstrikes targeting ISIS and other designated terrorist groups in Syria have killed 380 civilians over the past 18 months, including 99 children and 67 women, according to a report released by the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.
Coalition airstrikes have killed 4,643 people since the beginning of Operation Inherent Resolve, which was launched in September 2014 with the aim to “degrade and defeat” ISIS in Syria and Iraq.
Among the civilian fatalities documented by the Observatory is a family of seven that were killed in the village of Dali Hasan, and 64 people in Bir Mahli, a village in the province of Aleppo that was hit on April 30, 2015.
According to the Observatory, 31 children and 19 women were among the civilians killed in Bir Mahli.
The U.S. military has admitted to killing 21 civilians since the beginning of Operation Inherent Resolve, VICE News reports.
Recommended Reads
- The Daily Beast: Russia Is Flying Israeli Drones Against Anti-Assad Rebels In Syria
- The National: The Future of Syria Rests in Two Alternatives
- Open Democracy: Syria Continues to Bleed While the Middle East Closes its Doors
- The Diplomat: Is North Korea Fighting for Assad in Syria?
- BBC: ‘How my Daughter Ended up in Syria’
- War on the Rocks: The Three Faces of Russian Spetsnaz in Syria
Top image: High Negotiations Committee (HNC) head Asaad al-Zoabi, left, listens to chief opposition negotiator Mohammad Alloush during a meeting with U.N. envoy Staffan de Mistura in Geneva on Thursday March 24, 2016. (Fabrice Coffrini/AP Photo)