Assad forces obstructed the entrance of Russian delegates to rebel-held border area in effort to forestall deal, opposition website reports
Russian FM says Moscow is committed to assisting regional leaders in merging Syria’s political opposition ahead of negotiations
Writing for the Saudi-owned outlet, Hamidi says the Russian-led cease-fire plan will fail if not followed by political efforts aimed at unity instead of division
Major efforts are underway to unify the scope of the opposition ahead of upcoming peace talks in Astana and Geneva, Souriatna writes
Adnan Ali outlines the recent political and military developments, asking if the opposition is succumbing to international pressure around the fate of Assad
All4Syria asks whether recent developments on the Syrian scene, both political and military, suggest the start of a new stage of conflict between big powers?
Russian diplomat says 2016 peace deal would have witnessed breakthrough had the U.S. worked to separate moderate opposition from terror groups, state media reports
Talk is circulating of who will likely succeed the opposition negotiator following predictions of a reshuffle at the request of main backer Saudi Arabia, Alsouria Net writes
Saudi FM purportedly told Syrian opposition that group must reinvent its ‘vision’ or risk becoming obsolete, Alsulta Alrabiha writes
France’s dynamic new president has demonstrated the willingness to show fresh leadership on the global stage, Saudi-owned Asharq al-Awsat newspaper writes
Al-Araby’s political analyst Salama Kila paints ISIS as an imperialist tool used as by the powerful as a pretext for invasion and conquest
Local monitoring group says regime and Russian forces have violated the truce 98 times since it went into force on Saturday, Zaman al-Wasl reports
Rumors of meeting are aimed at delegitimizing the group in the wake of the safe-zones agreement in the south, rebel spokesman tells Zaman al-Wasl
Writing for the Turkey-based outlet, Abou al-Khair al-Attar claims Israel benefits from prolonging the crisis in Syria largely at the expense of Ankara
With news of an agreement between big powers for a a safe zone in the south, the opposition is becoming aware that decisions on Syria’s future are increasingly out of their control, Ali Ayed writes
Russian foreign minister says main parameters have been agreed on as Moscow leads negotiations around proposed safe zones
Assad’s failure to secure the areas he retakes will be the opposition’s last hope in gaining public support, a former media executive writes for Saudi-owned newspaper
Veteran opposition figure Michel Kilo asks if the cooperation between the U.S. and Russia on the de-escalation zones proposal is a step forward, or just hot air
A pro-regime columnist says that Syria will be a test to know if Trump can face the American deep state and succeed in normalizing relations with Russia
Talks are still ongoing in Geneva, although there are still no direct negotiations between the regime and the various opposition platforms, SANA writes
