Syria’s opposition factions met in Cairo on Saturday to agree on a 10-point vision outlining recommendations to solve the crisis, while the National Coalition is yet to announce its response to the move.
An official invitation was not extended for the National Coalition to attend the conference, with the president’s deputy being denied a visa to enter Egypt for the meetings. However, the Coalition was informally represented by several members including former Coalition President, Ahmed Jarba, and Fayez Sarah.
Sources also revealed that Haitham Manna attended the conference as a human rights expert, without representing the Coordination Body.
The National Coalition officially rejected attending the upcoming Moscow conference without an agenda or the implementation of Geneva 2 statement. The National Coalition has claimed it would allow its members to attend personally.
The first and most important vision of Cairo conference insists the negotiation process should lead to a democratic regime and a sovereign civil state.
The final conference statement announced the agreement of a general treaty as a base for a democratic state, protecting political freedom, civil rights and equality.
The conference insisted on the need of a historical settlement to guarantee the Syrians’ demands according to the Geneva statement under international protection.
Attendees insisted on the need for unity between opposition factions as their divisions were responsible for prolonging the conflict.
The Cairo conference’s final statement insisted on releasing all detainees (men and women), stopping war crimes, and insuring humane living conditions for all Syrians, alongside helping refugees and the displaced to return home.
“Ending all foreign military existence in Syria, restricting arms to the government and the new regime, and demanding the international community to stop the terrorist flow to Syria” were other main points discussed in the Cairo conference.
Attendees added that any political solution to the Syrian crisis must guarantee a radical democratic change that criminalizes violence and sectarianism.
The Cairo conference announced further talks would be held this April, with the forming of a committee to communicate with opposition members.
Russia has recently called to host a conference in Moscow for peace talks regarding the Syrian crisis, following two failed conferences in Geneva last year between regime and opposition representatives.
