Syria Rivals Due to Discuss Power Transition
Al Jazeera reports on the continuing peace talks in Geneva, where the key issue of transitional government is due to be discussed.
“It was hoped that talks between the government and the opposition on Monday, mediated by U.N.-Arab League special envoy Lakhdar Brahimi, would move on to the central issues that divide the two sides after nearly three years of civil war – Syria’s political future and that of President Bashar al-Assad,” the network says.
“The establishment of a transitional government was called for in the 2012 Geneva communique, the document upon which Geneva II is supposed to be based. It calls for the establishment of a governing body to be formed by consent between the two parties. So far, however, the Syrian government has refused to acknowledge the possibility that Assad will step down as part of securing peace.
“The regime has emphasized that the question of rule would have to be put to the Syrian people at the end of Assad’s constitutional term and cannot be enforced by external parties.”
U.S. Resumes Nonlethal Aid to Syrian Opposition
Associated Press reports that the U.S. has resumed deliveries of nonlethal aid to Syrian opposition groups, more than one month after extremists seized moderate rebel warehouses, prompting a cutoff of Western supplies.
“Communications equipment and other items are being funneled for now only to non-armed opposition groups,” the wire reports.
“But the move nevertheless boosts Syria’s beleaguered rebels, who saw their international support slide after Islamic militants seized bases near the Turkish border that had been under the authority of a key U.S.-backed leader. It could also be seen as a U.S. reward to the opposition for its participation in ongoing peace talks with President Bashar al-Assad’s government in Geneva.
“U.S. officials, who weren’t authorized to speak publicly on the matter and demanded anonymity, said the aid was being sent through Turkey into Syria, with the coordination of the Free Syrian Army’s Supreme Military Council, led by Gen. Salim Idris, a secular-minded, Western-backed moderate. They stressed that the halt in supplies last month was only a ‘precautionary measure’ until the Obama administration could once again verify the security of aid packages.”
Pro-Government Forces Find a Haven at Syrian Town’s Christian Monastery
Fred Pleitgen of CNN reports on an unlikely battle zone: the Christian monastery in Saidnaya, near Damascus.
“These days, there is a gruesome sight at the feet of the statue of Christ the savior. About 30 mutilated and charred bodies lie in piles near a footpath that leads to the monastery. The dead are rebel fighters who tried to storm the monastery but were killed as they advanced, Syria’s government says,” he writes.
“The attack happened on January 19 and allegedly involved hundreds of rebel fighters. The regime says that in all, 60 militants were killed in the fighting.
‘They came from another mountain a few miles away and destroyed our front gate,’ says a pro-Christian fighter who supports Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and was involved in the battle for the mountaintop.
“The Cherubim Monastery is not a civilian target these days. Dozens of pro-Assad fighters, mostly Christians, as well as regular Syrian army forces, are stationed there. The force has a tank, artillery pieces, mortars and light weapons at its disposal. Many of the Christians in Saidnaya say they are under threat from radical Islamists among rebel fighters battling the Assad regime.”
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NY Times:Syria Willing to Let Some Leave Area it Barricaded
AP: Opposition: No Progress on Syria Aid Convoy
BBC: Khaled Khalifeh’s Café Society: Damascus Life Must Go On
Telegraph: Submit or Survive: The Choice Facing Syrian Families Like Mine
AP: U.S. Resumes Nonlethal Aid to Opposition