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| Free Syrian Army rejects one-sided deal put up by Kofi | |
| 2012-06-30 | |
BEIRUT/ISKENDERUN, Turkey: A senior opposition official [in the Free Syrian Army, FSA] said Syrian opposition groups would reject a political transition plan proposed by peace envoy Kofi Annan unless it explicitly required Assad to step down before a unity government is formed.
"The proposal is still murky to us but I can tell you that if it does not clearly state that Assad must step down, it will be unacceptable to us," said Samir Nashar, an executive member of the international Syrian National Council. Annan's transition proposal is one of the main topics that Russia, the other four permanent UN Security Council members and key players in the Middle East will discuss at a meeting in Geneva on Saturday, according to United Nations diplomats. Rebel fighters locked in the war to topple Assad said there was no part of the plan they could accept, and they had lost patience with UN envoy Annan's peace-making efforts. "This is just a new labyrinth. It is new silliness for us to get lost in and haggle over who can participate and who can't," said Ahmed, a Free Syrian Army (FSA) fighter in Homs, epicenter of the revolt against four decades of Assad family rule in which the more than 10,000 people have been killed, by a UN count. A member of the rebel group in Damascus suburb was also dismissive. "I'll be direct. The FSA is doing its work, and it is not looking to the outside world. We don't want a transitional government unless it is the one formed by rebel military councils. The world is conspiring against the Syrian revolution," he said. In April, Annan tried to implement a cease-fire to quell violence before embarking on peace talks. But the truce failed to take hold. Diplomatic sources at the United Nations said the plan Annan will now pitch on Saturday aims to start the political process without waiting for a cease-fire. | |
| Posted by:Steve White |