Saudi Arabia to meet Syrian opposition next week

By Ramazan Turget

RIYADH, Saudi Arabia (AA) – Saudi Arabia Monday announced that a meeting with the Syrian opposition will be held on Nov. 22-24 in Riyadh, according to the official Saudi Press Agency (SPA).

The meeting aims to unite different opposition groups and resume UN-backed talks in Geneva to find a political solution to the six-year conflict.

No information was given on which opposition groups will attend.

Several rounds of peace talks -- in both Geneva and the Kazakh capital Astana -- have so far failed to end the Syrian conflict, in which hundreds of thousands of civilians are believed to have been killed.

Turkey and Iran, along with Russia, are the brokers for the Astana peace talks. In the latest round of talks in May, the three countries announced plans to establish “de-escalation zones” throughout the war-ravaged state.

During May talks in Astana, Turkey (which supports the Syrian opposition) agreed with Russia and Iran (which support the Assad regime) on a plan to establish a network of “de-escalation zones” in various regions of Syria.