Syrian Government Blamed for Failed Geneva Talks

The United States and France on Friday accused the Syrian government of obstructing United Nations-sponsored peace talks in Geneva, one day after the eighth round of negotiations ended without any results.

U.S. Department of State spokesperson Heather Nauert commended opposition negotiators on Friday for their “constructive participation” in talks, which she said stood in contrast to the “obstructionism and procrastination of the Syrian regime,” Al-Jazeera reported.

France issued a similar statement, saying that the Syrian government is to blame for failed negotiations.

“We deplore the attitude of the Syrian regime, which has refused to engage in the discussion,” deputy foreign ministry spokesman Alexandre Georgini told reporters on Friday, according to Reuters.

“The Syrian regime is responsible for the lack of progress in the negotiations,” he said, one day after U.N. envoy for Syria, Staffan de Mistura, blamed the Syrian government for setting preconditions and refusing to discuss anything other than “terrorism.”

The Syrian government denied accusations on late Friday, saying it has engaged positively in talks.

Damascus has “always dealt in a positive manner with all honest efforts to resolve the [country’s] crisis,” an unidentified official in Syria’s foreign ministry told the state-run SANA news agency, according to Al Jazeera.

Criticism of the Syrian government comes after its lead negotiator on Thursday said that Damascus would not engage in discussions with the opposition as long as they insist on removing President Bashar al-Assad before the start of a political transition.

Government negotiators also skipped an entire week of talks this month because of the opposition’s insistence on Assad’s removal from power.

Airstrikes Kill Nine in Idlib as Syrian Troops March Into Opposition Stronghold

At least nine people were killed in airstrikes on the northwestern province of Idlib on Sunday, one day after pro-government forces entered parts of the rebel-held area, the Associated Press reported.

Citing Syrian Civil Defense, the AP said that at least two children and seven women were among those killed in Sunday’s strikes.

It was not immediately clear whether Russia or the Syrian government was behind the attack.

On Saturday, pro-government forces captured Tal al-Khanazeer village in southeastern Idlib from rebels, the AP said, describing the incursion as one of the “deepest” in the area.

The government does not have a foothold in Idlib, which is dominated by insurgent and militant groups. But, “if the government succeeds in pushing deeper into the province it would be a turning point in the conflict,” the AP said.

Idlib province is designated by Turkey, Russia and Iran as a de-escalation zone. Turkish troops deployed to the province in October in an attempt to enforce the cease-fire agreement. Turkey has also established observation posts in areas adjacent to the Kurdish-held region of Afrin in a bid to deter Kurdish advances near its frontier.

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on Sunday that his country would not allow “terror nests” near its frontier, referring to territory held by the People’s Protection Units (YPG) in Syria, according to the AP.

“We will clean Afrin of terrorists, we will clean Manbij of terrorists. We will clean Tel Abyad, Ras al-Ayn and Qamishli of terrorists,” he said, referring to Kurdish-held territory in northern Syria.

Scores Dead in Clashes With ISIS in Deir Ezzor

At least 14 pro-government fighters were killed in clashes with the so-called Islamic State in Deir Ezzor on Saturday the U.K.-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) reported.

This adds to the number of fighters that have been killed by ISIS since the militant group started carrying out retaliatory attacks on government forces north of the town of Boukamal early this month.

The SOHR said on Sunday that at least 67 pro-government fighters have been killed in 12 days of fighting. It was not immediately clear whether the figure incorporated those killed in Saturday’s battles.

ISIS, on the other, has lost 52 militants during that same period, according to the monitoring group.

The flash attacks carried out by militants come in retaliation for the loss of all of the group’s major strongholds in Syria last month.

The SOHR says ISIS still controls around 3 percent of Syrian territory – around 2,160 square miles (5,600 square km).

Recommended Reads

• Reuters: In Syria, Russia Securing Position as Assad Presses War
• Foreign Policy: What Vladimir Putin Really Wants in the Middle East
• Newsweek: Is the War in Syria Over? One Year After Aleppo Battle, U.S. and Russia Still Fighting on Different Sides
• The Sunday Times: Hundreds of Isis Widows Trapped in Syria as Caliphate Falls
• The Los Angeles Times: Islamic State’s Self-Styled Capital Is in Ruins and its Population Scattered. Who Will Rebuild Raqqah?