Assad Willing to Discuss ‘Everything’ at Peace Talks, Will Take Control of All of Syria

The Syrian government is prepared to negotiate “everything” in peace talks in Astana said President Bashar al-Assad on Monday, Reuters reported.

The proposed negotiations sponsored by Russia in the Kazakh capital have no clear schedule or representation from the opposition yet.

Last month, Russia, Turkey and Iran brokered a nationwide cease-fire deal, saying the truce would pave the way for peace talks in Astana between the Syrian government and rebels.

Assad said the cease-fire was being violated and that his military would recapture all of Syria. Rebels accused pro-government forces of violating the cease-fire earlier this month and froze discussion of their participation in any peace talks.

Assad said he was also willing to negotiate his position as president, but that any new constitution that challenged his presidency must be subjected to a referendum. He also dismissed negotiating with any opposition groups backed by Saudi Arabia, France and Britain. The main opposition umbrella group known as the High Negotiations Committee is backed by Saudi Arabia.

“Who will be there from the other side? We do not yet know. Will it be a real Syrian opposition?” Assad said.

Car Bomb Targets Government Military Intelligence, Fighting Continues Outside Capital

At least five people were killed in a car bomb attack west of Damascus on Sunday, the Telegraph reported.

Three of those killed were members of the government’s military intelligence, and 15 more people were injured in the attack claimed by Jabhat Fatah al-Sham. Formerly known as Jabhat al-Nusra, the al-Qaida affiliate is not included in the nationwide truce brokered by Russia and Turkey on December 30.

The blast took place near the town of Sasa, which was included in a recent rebel reconciliation deal with the government in a number of towns southwest of Damascus. Rebels in the area were allowed passage to the rebel-held province of Idlib in the north.

Fighting has continued around Damascus despite the cease-fire, with government forces accusing rebels of poisoning the capital’s water supply in the northwestern region of Wadi Barada. The valley supplies 70 percent of the capital’s drinking water, and has been subjected to government airstrikes throughout the cease-fire as the military, backed by the Lebanese militia Hezbollah, attempt to gain control of the area.

Car Bomb Kills 43 People in Rebel-Held Town Near Turkish Border

At least 43 people were killed by a car bomb near the Turkish border on Saturday, BBC News reported.

An explosion outside the courthouse in Azaz, a rebel-held town north of Aleppo, is the worst attack yet since the December 30 truce brokered by Russia and Turkey.

No one has claimed the attack yet, but Azaz was recently attacked by the so-called Islamic State (ISIS). The town is a key Turkish-backed rebel stronghold that ISIS has tried to capture several times. The extremist group is not included in the cease-fire deal.

Six of those killed were rebels and the rest were civilians according to the United Kingdom-based monitor the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.

Some 48 ISIS militants were killed on Sunday by the Turkish-led operation in Syria known as Euphrates Shield, the Turkish military said on Monday, Reuters reported. Turkey intervened militarily in Syria more than four months ago to drive back ISIS from its border.

RECOMMENDED READS:

• BBC: The Biblical River at the Heart of a Water War
• The Cipher Brief: Placating Patrons Who Control the Cards in Syria
• The Century Foundation: Staring Into Syria’s Diplomatic Fog
• The Washington Post: U.S. Military Aid Is Fueling Big Ambitions for Syria’s Leftist Kurdish Militia
• Foreign Policy: To Crush ISIS, Will Trump Send U.S. Troops Into Syria?