Dave
Honorary Master
Another video of the aid convoy, from RT.
[video=youtube_share;Gb_hkr7LT4A]http://youtu.be/Gb_hkr7LT4A[/video]
[video=youtube_share;Gb_hkr7LT4A]http://youtu.be/Gb_hkr7LT4A[/video]
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The Syrian Conflict Thread
http://www.nytimes.com/2016/01/17/world/middleeast/iran-sanctions-lifted-nuclear-deal
More at:http://www.news24.com/World/News/isis-attack-on-syrias-deir-ezzor-kills-35-20160116
More at:http://www.news24.com/World/News/isis-attack-on-syrias-deir-ezzor-kills-35-20160116
Grant
Honorary Master
IS confirms death of 'Jihadi John' in Syria drone strike
http://news.yahoo.com/confirms-death-jihadi-john-syria-drone-strike-205302791.html
Grant
Honorary Master
Four London schoolgirls who left UK for Syria married men approved by Isis
http://www.theguardian.com/world/20...eft-uk-for-syria-married-men-approved-by-isis
http://www.theguardian.com/world/20...eft-uk-for-syria-married-men-approved-by-isis
Dave
Honorary Master
lol, no sympathy whatsoever.
Syria's main opposition group 'to join talks in Geneva'
The main Syrian opposition body has agreed to attend talks which have begun in Geneva, sources told Al Jazeera.
UN Special Envoy to Syria Staffan de Mistura said on Friday that he believed he would be able to meet the Higher Negotiating Committee (HNC) of the Syrian opposition on Sunday.
Al Jazeera's James Bays, reporting from Geneva, said de Mistura sounded optimistic about the participation of the HNC.
"He suggested he could be speaking to the opposition as early on Sunday. However, we still need to get the official confirmation," Bays said.
"I've been following the news coming out of Riyadh very closely in the past weeks and found that every third person will tell you a completely different story," he added.
Indirect talks aimed at resolving Syria's five-year conflict started on Friday at the UN headquarters in Geneva, without the participation of the HNC.
The talks are the first since two rounds of negotiations collapsed in 2014. Syria's conflict has killed more than 250,000 people, displaced millions and sent hundreds of thousands as refugees to Europe.
The first meeting was between the de Mistura and a government delegation headed by the country's ambassador to the UN, Bashar Jaafari.
A UN spokesman said that de Mistura would later meet with other delegates, including civil society representatives.
The main opposition delegation had initially said it would not participate in the talks without an end to the bombardment of civilians by Russian and government forces and a lifting of sieges in rebel-held areas.
The meetings are part of a process outlined in a UN resolution last month that envisages an 18-month timetable for a political transition in Syria, including the drafting of a new constitution and elections.
Disputes are ongoing over which opposition parties will attend, with the HNC coming under criticism for including the Army of Islam group, which controls wide areas near the Syrian capital, Damascus, and is considered a terrorist organisation by the Syrian government and Russia.
Earlier on Friday, UN spokesman Ahmad Fawzi reflected the sense of chaos and confusion surrounding the beginning of peace negotiations when he told reporters at a briefing that "I don't have a time, I don't have the exact location, and I can't tell you anything about the delegation."
Source
http://www.aljazeera.com/news/2016/...-group-join-talks-geneva-160129182452541.html
The main Syrian opposition body has agreed to attend talks which have begun in Geneva, sources told Al Jazeera.
UN Special Envoy to Syria Staffan de Mistura said on Friday that he believed he would be able to meet the Higher Negotiating Committee (HNC) of the Syrian opposition on Sunday.
Al Jazeera's James Bays, reporting from Geneva, said de Mistura sounded optimistic about the participation of the HNC.
"He suggested he could be speaking to the opposition as early on Sunday. However, we still need to get the official confirmation," Bays said.
"I've been following the news coming out of Riyadh very closely in the past weeks and found that every third person will tell you a completely different story," he added.
Indirect talks aimed at resolving Syria's five-year conflict started on Friday at the UN headquarters in Geneva, without the participation of the HNC.
The talks are the first since two rounds of negotiations collapsed in 2014. Syria's conflict has killed more than 250,000 people, displaced millions and sent hundreds of thousands as refugees to Europe.
The first meeting was between the de Mistura and a government delegation headed by the country's ambassador to the UN, Bashar Jaafari.
A UN spokesman said that de Mistura would later meet with other delegates, including civil society representatives.
The main opposition delegation had initially said it would not participate in the talks without an end to the bombardment of civilians by Russian and government forces and a lifting of sieges in rebel-held areas.
The meetings are part of a process outlined in a UN resolution last month that envisages an 18-month timetable for a political transition in Syria, including the drafting of a new constitution and elections.
Disputes are ongoing over which opposition parties will attend, with the HNC coming under criticism for including the Army of Islam group, which controls wide areas near the Syrian capital, Damascus, and is considered a terrorist organisation by the Syrian government and Russia.
Earlier on Friday, UN spokesman Ahmad Fawzi reflected the sense of chaos and confusion surrounding the beginning of peace negotiations when he told reporters at a briefing that "I don't have a time, I don't have the exact location, and I can't tell you anything about the delegation."
Source
http://www.aljazeera.com/news/2016/...-group-join-talks-geneva-160129182452541.html
Dave
Honorary Master
So the opposition has now been bombed to the negotiating table? It had to happen with the Russians giving so much support to Assad.
Still will be shocked if they agree to anything during these talks, the opposition are too fragmented, with Saudi Arabia and Iran
Dave
Honorary Master
I suspect the weaker groups might be more amenable to some sort of truce, Iran isn't supporting any of the opposition groups though, they are Assad's ally.
ISIL bombings kill at least 45 in Syria amid shaky peace talks
More at:http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/world/2016/01/31/syria-bombing/79601578/
More at:http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/world/2016/01/31/syria-bombing/79601578/
UN envoy declares temporary pause in Syria peace talks
The UN special envoy for Syria has announced a temporary pause in peace talks in Geneva.
Following a meeting with the Syrian opposition's Higher Negotiations Committee (HNC) in the Swiss city on Wednesday, Staffan de Mistura fixed February 25 as the date for resuming talks.
"This is not the end and not the failure for the talks. They both came and they both stayed - and both sides insisted on a political process," he announced.
Riyad Hijab, the head of the HNC, joined the opposition delegation in Geneva on Wednesday as they met de Mistura.
The meetings are part of a process outlined in a UN resolution last month that envisages an 18-month timetable for a political transition, including the drafting of a new constitution and elections.
Farah Atassi, HNC member, told Al Jazeera the Syrian people are being targeted through increased violence in the country amid the talks in Switzerland.
"We are being targeted on the ground in Syria, politically and through the media," she said.
"We came here to end the suffering of the Syrian people. Our presence here is a message to the international community: We will not back down from our demands. We call on the friends of Syria to pressure the Syrian government and Russia to end their air strikes before any negotiations take place."
Quoting information from the Syrian Network for Human Rights (SNHR), the opposition accused the Bashar al-Assad government and Russia of killing at least 300 civilians since the launch of the so-called Geneva III conference on January 29.
De Mistura separately met a delegation from the Assad government on Tuesday, one day after meeting HNC representatives.
Talking and fighting
Before he announced the pause, De Mistura had said the Geneva meetings would start with proximity talks and were expected to last for six months, with government and opposition delegations sitting in separate rooms and UN officials shuttling between them.
"The immediate priorities are a broad ceasefire, humanitarian aid, and halting the threat posed by the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL)" group, the UN said in a statement.
On the ground, there has been no let-up in fighting despite the peace negotiations in Geneva. Syria's official news agency SANA reported that government forces cut off on Wednesday a supply route for rebels in Aleppo.
Reporter's Notebook: The shifting lines in Syria
"The army and armed forces units operating in Aleppo’s northern countryside, in cooperation with groups of popular committees, broke the siege imposed on Nubbul and al-Zahra towns by terrorist organisations," SANA said.
The Syrian government launched a major offensive from the north of Aleppo and captured several strategically important towns on Monday.
The UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said at least 16 air strikes in Aleppo had been conducted since Wednesday morning.
The monitoring group also said battles were taking place in the northern suburbs of Aleppo.
According to an SNHR report released on Tuesday, 30 people were killed in Aleppo, 16 in Deir Az Zor, eight in Damascus suburbs, four in Deraa, two in Idlib and one in Raqqa.
The HNC has condemned the Aleppo offensive, saying it showed that Assad's government was not committed to finding a peaceful resolution to the conflict.
Riad Nassan Agha, an HNC delegation spokesman in Geneva, urged the international community and the UN on Tuesday to take measures in order to "deter Russia and the Syrian government from committing further crimes" against the Syrian people.
"These barbaric attacks are designed to put pressure on the opposition’s negotiating delegation and to make a mockery of the political process currently under way in Geneva and the international community that sponsors it," Agha said.
"We came to Geneva to prove to the world that we are serious about finding a political solution at a time when the Assad regime, Russia and Iran escalate attacks on the Syrian people."
The Geneva negotiations are meant to develop a "road map" to end the nearly five-year conflict that has resulted in more than 250,000 Syrians being killed.
The conflict has also displaced millions more and sent hundreds of thousands fleeing as refugees to Europe.
Source
http://www.aljazeera.com/news/2016/...-pause-syria-peace-talks-160203151042311.html
The UN special envoy for Syria has announced a temporary pause in peace talks in Geneva.
Following a meeting with the Syrian opposition's Higher Negotiations Committee (HNC) in the Swiss city on Wednesday, Staffan de Mistura fixed February 25 as the date for resuming talks.
"This is not the end and not the failure for the talks. They both came and they both stayed - and both sides insisted on a political process," he announced.
Riyad Hijab, the head of the HNC, joined the opposition delegation in Geneva on Wednesday as they met de Mistura.
The meetings are part of a process outlined in a UN resolution last month that envisages an 18-month timetable for a political transition, including the drafting of a new constitution and elections.
Farah Atassi, HNC member, told Al Jazeera the Syrian people are being targeted through increased violence in the country amid the talks in Switzerland.
"We are being targeted on the ground in Syria, politically and through the media," she said.
"We came here to end the suffering of the Syrian people. Our presence here is a message to the international community: We will not back down from our demands. We call on the friends of Syria to pressure the Syrian government and Russia to end their air strikes before any negotiations take place."
Quoting information from the Syrian Network for Human Rights (SNHR), the opposition accused the Bashar al-Assad government and Russia of killing at least 300 civilians since the launch of the so-called Geneva III conference on January 29.
De Mistura separately met a delegation from the Assad government on Tuesday, one day after meeting HNC representatives.
Talking and fighting
Before he announced the pause, De Mistura had said the Geneva meetings would start with proximity talks and were expected to last for six months, with government and opposition delegations sitting in separate rooms and UN officials shuttling between them.
"The immediate priorities are a broad ceasefire, humanitarian aid, and halting the threat posed by the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL)" group, the UN said in a statement.
On the ground, there has been no let-up in fighting despite the peace negotiations in Geneva. Syria's official news agency SANA reported that government forces cut off on Wednesday a supply route for rebels in Aleppo.
Reporter's Notebook: The shifting lines in Syria
"The army and armed forces units operating in Aleppo’s northern countryside, in cooperation with groups of popular committees, broke the siege imposed on Nubbul and al-Zahra towns by terrorist organisations," SANA said.
The Syrian government launched a major offensive from the north of Aleppo and captured several strategically important towns on Monday.
The UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said at least 16 air strikes in Aleppo had been conducted since Wednesday morning.
The monitoring group also said battles were taking place in the northern suburbs of Aleppo.
According to an SNHR report released on Tuesday, 30 people were killed in Aleppo, 16 in Deir Az Zor, eight in Damascus suburbs, four in Deraa, two in Idlib and one in Raqqa.
The HNC has condemned the Aleppo offensive, saying it showed that Assad's government was not committed to finding a peaceful resolution to the conflict.
Riad Nassan Agha, an HNC delegation spokesman in Geneva, urged the international community and the UN on Tuesday to take measures in order to "deter Russia and the Syrian government from committing further crimes" against the Syrian people.
"These barbaric attacks are designed to put pressure on the opposition’s negotiating delegation and to make a mockery of the political process currently under way in Geneva and the international community that sponsors it," Agha said.
"We came to Geneva to prove to the world that we are serious about finding a political solution at a time when the Assad regime, Russia and Iran escalate attacks on the Syrian people."
The Geneva negotiations are meant to develop a "road map" to end the nearly five-year conflict that has resulted in more than 250,000 Syrians being killed.
The conflict has also displaced millions more and sent hundreds of thousands fleeing as refugees to Europe.
Source
http://www.aljazeera.com/news/2016/...-pause-syria-peace-talks-160203151042311.html
Unhappy1
Honorary Master
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Russia says 'serious grounds' to suspect Turkey preparing to invade Syria
http://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/world/russia-says-serious/2488902.html
http://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/world/russia-says-serious/2488902.html
Unhappy1
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- 28,881
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Saudi Arabia offers to send ground troops to Syria to fight Isis
More at:http://www.theguardian.com/world/2016/feb/04/saudi-arabia-ground-troops-syria-fight-isis
More at:http://www.theguardian.com/world/2016/feb/04/saudi-arabia-ground-troops-syria-fight-isis
Dave
Honorary Master
Well, they have been financing and supplying the anti-Assad jihadis. Maybe they want to give them uniforms so they can pretend they are the Saudi army...
Unhappy1
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Im sure this is a tongue in cheek comment but that wont lead to any relevant change on the ground. Turkey is a another matter though, they actually have an army that could change the face of the war.
Grant
Honorary Master
the king does not look terribly impressed:
[video=youtube;Y8HufjxiwJA]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y8HufjxiwJA[/video]
Unhappy1
Honorary Master
- Joined
- May 25, 2011
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- 28,881
- Reaction score
- 21,804
