Hoshyar Zebari speaks with Asharq Al-Awsat about his country’s neutral position towards the Syrian conflict and his attempts to bring the Syrian opposition to the negotiating table at Geneva
Reports suggest U.S. has been unable to stop Gulf money reaching extremists
Syrian Minister for National Reconciliation Ali Haidar believes there is a “serious American thought” being given to “opening channels” with Damascus
Veteran dissident argues America’s interests are served in perpetuating the crisis
A “political solution” in Syria equates between victims and oppressors, and in fact prefers the latter and seeks to perpetuate their actions and protect them from being held to account
Those who want to go to Geneva are linking the conference’s fate to the position that will be adopted by the United States, as though they were wishful to test this position once again
Compromise is the only logical alternative to war, but any resolution is likely to be regional this time
The Russian and American positions would not survive even the most cursory examination
Reports say that cartoonist Akram Raslan was killed under torture
The Syrian National Council threatens to leave the Coalition if the latter goes to Geneva II
Syrians fear that the West has decided to keep Assad and rehabilitate him
As a result of all this American hesitation in our region, some stubborn and oppressive regimes have succeeded in staying in power and maintaining the grip of their forces and their “guards” over their people
Saudis, Tunisians and Libyans are among the most frequently encountered nationalities
Elsewhere, activists claim to have discovered mass graves for victims of government forces
Source says Russia insists Assad must run in elections
Lavrov warns Jihadis could threaten their country of origin after Syria
Assad offered to dismantle his chemical weapons, before calling them “imaginary”
There must be a strong Security Council Resolution to verify that the Assad regime is keeping its commitments, and there must be consequences if they fail to do so
Opposition says the Iranian initiative is not serious and lacks political credibility
Kerry said there is no military solution to the crisis
