Russia and Syria Condemn U.S. Attack on Pro-Government Militia
The Russian and Syrian governments expressed outrage on Friday over a U.S.-led airstrike on an Iran-backed militia convoy that resulted in the deaths of several pro-Assad regime fighters, reports Al Jazeera.
Coalition fighter planes struck the convoy near the southern Syrian town of al-Tanf while it was advancing inside a protected “deconfliction zone” on Thursday – a move that U.S. officials have claimed was a defensive measure to protect their forces at Tanf airbase.
“This brazen attack by the so-called international coalition exposes the falseness of its claims to be fighting terrorism,” said a Syrian military source, as relayed by state media outlet SANA.
Russia’s deputy foreign minister Gennady Gatilov added to the condemnation, calling the strike “a breach of Syrian sovereignty.”
“Such actions that were carried out against the Syrian armed forces … [are] completely unacceptable,” he said.
Geneva Talks Hit Pothole Over U.N’s Role in Transition of Power
U.N. special envoy Staffan de Mistura has agreed to put his proposal for a Syrian constitution on hold in order to stop the sixth round of Geneva peace talks being derailed by withdrawals and walkouts less than a week into proceedings.
Delegates from the Free Syrian Army walked out of the talks, complaining about a lack of clarity from de Mistura over the role his office would take during a potential transition of power in the country, reports Al Arabiya.
De Mistura has agreed to put the constitutional proposal to one side while legal experts from the U.N. and the High Negotiations Committee, the opposition delegation of which the FSA is a member, attempt to find some accord over the legal role of the special envoy’s office during the transition.
Speaking to Al Jazeera on Friday, HNC spokesman Issam Rayes said: “We [the opposition] submitted legal inquiries after discussing the proposal with legal experts. We will discuss this in the next meeting today.”
The Syrian government has refused to take part in the talks and has repeatedly questioned their legitimacy.
Syrian Government Forces Retake Villages Following ISIS Raids
The Syrian army has taken back control of two villages in central Syria following an assault by ISIS forces that resulted in over 50 deaths, half of them civilians, reports AFP, citing the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR).
Twenty-five civilians, including five children, and 27 pro-government fighters were killed during a raid on the Hama province villages of Aqareb and al-Mabujeh by the so-called Islamic State on Thursday.
But government forces regained control of the village 24 hours later, according to SOHR.