Riyadh opposition meeting calls for inclusive Syria – statement

According to the agreement reached in Riyadh, the opposition will be represented by a 32-member body that includes political and military representatives.

“This conference was an important step ahead of the next ISSG meeting next week”.

They are gathered at a heavily secured luxury hotel in the Saudi capital.

Security was exceptionally tight at the hotel venue on Thursday. A possible December 18 meeting to advance the Syrian peace talks in NY is “not locked in yet”, he added.

But the opposition groups insisted that “Bashar al-Assad and his aides quit power with the start of the transition period” set out last month in Vienna by top diplomats from 17 countries.

Groups like Ahrar al-Sham are brothers-in-arms on the ground with the Nusra Front, the al-Qaeda affiliate which is close to IS in ideology if not in practice – and which is also branded a terrorist group by the worldwide community even if it engages IS in turf battles.

“The participants are ready to negotiate with representatives of the Syrian regime… within a specific timeframe that would be agreed on with the United Nations”, participants said in a statement.

“The outcome is somewhat positive… but it is fragile and the process can collapse at any time”, he said.

Russia, the United States, European and Middle Eastern countries agreed last month in talks in Vienna on a two-year timeline leading to Syrian national elections, but left many questions unresolved, most notably the fate of Assad.

It named the Syria-based National Coordination Committee for Democratic Change, which is generally tolerated by the regime and participated in talks organised by Moscow on the conflict in 2014 and 2015.

For Karim Bitar of the Institute for worldwide and Strategic Affairs, “the apparent split in Ahrar al-Sham is a first sign that things could go wrong”.

“Today will be for choosing a delegation of 42 people to select the negotiators”, said a Gulf-based participant.

A powerful Islamist insurgent group said it pulled out of a Syrian opposition meeting in Riyadh on Thursday because rebel proposals had been ignored, in a move which highlighted the enduring divisions among President Bashar al-Assad’s enemies.

Marwan Kabalan, a Syrian political analyst, said that the two-day summit in Riyadh was very significant because most of the GCC states were either directly or indirectly involved in the Syrian conflict.

“Or he will have to leave through fighting, because the Syrian people refuse to allow this regime and person to stay in power”.

The comments drew a sharp response from Syrian Information Minister Omran al-Zoubi in Damascus, who called al-Jubeir’s statements a “farce”.

The US Secretary of State was clearly right when he said there were still some “kinks” to be dealt with before talks could proceed. “I advise you to take care of issues your own size”.

Raja Abdulrahim contributed to this article.