The main opposition group in Syria’s civil war had told U.S. and Russian negotiators they would be willing to come to the bargaining table if certain conditions are put in place.
The Syrian National Coalition said if the Syrian government allows humanitarian relief into besieged areas and they release women & children who have been taken captive by military troops they will agree to meet in Geneva.
However, the group refused to waive their demand any future government not include current president Bashir al-Assad. The Syrian government said they would not negotiate if that remains a condition of peace.
The Syrian government had agreed to ease the blockade on the rebel held town near the capital of Damascus. Food and flour entered the town of Qudsaya after the government was told markets had run out of food and poor civilians trapped by the fighting were unable to feed their children.
The war’s focus has shifted again to Aleppo where rebels are attempting to take control of the airport. Aleppo International Airport has been closed for a year because of the continual attacks.
U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry is in Israel and plans to meet with both Israeli and Palestinian leaders in an attempt to restart the stalled peace talks.
“I come here without any illusions about the difficulties, but I come here determined to work,” Kerry told reporters.
The talks have shown little signs of progress and Kerry is denying speculation that he is proposing a new interim peace deal. Kerry is expected to continue to push the Obama administration’s “two state” solution for the region.
Kerry will meet with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Jerusalem and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas in Bethlehem on Wednesday.
Israel is demanding that any peace deal include Palestinian acknowledgement of Israel as a Jewish state.
The UN-Arab League envoy to Syria has announced a delay in a peace conference planned for Geneva this month.
Lakhdar Brahimi said that after meeting with senior diplomats it was impossible to arrange a date for the conference. He said that he hopes to be able to bring all sides in the Syrian Civil War to the table before the end of 2013.
Brahimi said UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon is growing impatient with the situation and wants to have a conference happen as quickly as possible.
One of the key issues is between the U.S. and Russia, which are at odds about whether to include Iran as part of the peace process.
The Syrian opposition is fractured and asking for different demands other than the removal of President Bashir al-Assad. The Syrian government says that is a non-starter and will not hold peace talks if that is part of the process.
Israel is releasing 26 long held Palestinian prisoners as part of a deal worked out by the United States to resume peace talks.
The release is the second of four scheduled under the agreement.
All of the prisoners were convicted of murder before the 1993 Oslo agreements between Israel and the PLO. The prisoners have served between 19 and 28 years in Israeli prisons.
The announcement of the prisoner release comes on the heels of a second announcement, Israel will continue building Jewish settlements in the West Bank.
Palestinians walked away from the negotiation table in 2010 over Jewish settlements in the West Bank and East Jerusalem.
Arab and Western leaders are scheduled to meet with Syrian opposition leaders in London this week in an attempt to get them to the bargaining table.
A key group in the Syrian opposition, the Syrian National Council, is refusing to attend the next round of formal peace talks scheduled to take place in Geneva next month.
Foreign ministers of 11 nations are trying to lay the groundwork for what is being called the Geneva II conference. The leaders, which include representatives from the United States, Britain, Germany, France, Saudi Arabia and Turkey, are reaffirming their position that any peace process should be political in nature and move away from the current Syrian regime.
U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry sent a strong message to Syrian leader Bashar al-Assad that he would have to step down if he wants peace to come to his country.
“I don’t know anybody who believes the opposition will ever consent to Bashar al-Assad being part of the government,” Kerry said after talks with Arab officials. “He has bombed and gassed people in his country.”
Assad recently told a Lebanese television station he saw no reason why he could not stand for re-election in 2014.
More than 100,000 people have died since the civil war began in 2011.
Hamas held press conference Monday to condemn the peace talks between Palestinians and Israelis.
“We renew our rejection of these futile talks, and consider them purely a means for (Israel) to look good to the international community,” Hamas officials Mahmoud al-Zahar said. “We call on the Palestinian people to unite in confronting the crime that is the peace talks.” Continue reading →
Various sources are reporting that U.S. and EU envoys are having meetings with the military backed government in Egypt in an attempt to bring the supporters of ousted Muslim Brotherhood leader Mohammed Morsi together in a power sharing plan.
U.S. Deputy Secretary of State William Burns met with the Muslim Brotherhood and their political party and then met with Egyptian Foreign Minister Nabil Fahmy. European Union envoy Bernardino Leon joined the discussions with Fahmy. Continue reading →
U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry spoke to reporters after an initial meeting between Israeli and Palestinian negotiators and said that two sides will try to reach a “final status” agreement over the next nine months.
Kerry said that formal negotiations between the two sides would begin in the next two weeks either in Israel or the Palestinian territories. He also said that “all issues” would be up for discussion. Continue reading →
The U.S. State Department released a statement Sunday that said peace talks between Israel and Palestine will renew starting Monday in Washington.
The talks had been stalled since 2010. Continue reading →
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told his cabinet on Sunday that he will hold a national referendum on any peace agreement with the Palestinians.
Netanyahu said the decision on a peace agreement was too important to leave to the government. Israel has never held a single-issue referendum in its 65-year-history and cannot happen without legislation in the Knesset. Continue reading →