generalspeaking

Negotiating With Terrorists Indivisible from Authority

"The negotiations cannot continue while the regime is stepping up its violence against the Syrian people.
"It is not acceptable that the regime will send its own delegation to talk peace while it is killing our people in Syria."
"Yes, there are violations by some gangs ... because of the political and security chaos but the primary responsibility lies on the regime."
Louay Safi, Syrian opposition spokesman

"Please tell those who dream of wasting our time here in such a discussion to stop it.
"We cannot talk about a real and credible peace process before the killing and terrorism stops."
Faisal Mekdad, Syrian deputy foreign minister

Men carrying children run out of a burning building following a barrel bomb attack reportedly dropped by government forces in the northern Syrian city of Aleppo.

Ah, cool, reasonable intelligence hard at work and on display. And there is Lakhdar Brahimi, the UN-Arab League envoy acting as negotiator-go-between, meeting first with the regime representatives, then with the opposition. Ever hopeful is he. What Mr. Mekdad, representing the Syrian government wishes Mr. Brahimi to convey to the opposition is that their major demand is a non-starter.

The talks, the opposition insists, must begin with the understanding that a transitional governing body be agreed upon, one that would absolutely replace President Bashar al-Assad. To which the government delegation responds this will not occur. There must be a halt to violence by "terrorists", aka rebels battling to remove Mr. Assad from power.

"Killing and terrorism must stop" before reasonable debate can occur. Of course it is the killing and terrorism engaged upon by the opposition through the actions of the rebel militias, and sadly, inclusive of Islamist groups such as Nusra and ISIL, the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant; the former now endorsed by al-Qaeda, the latter spurned; both equally viciously deadly.

They do commit human rights abuses and atrocities that no responsible government could countenance. On the other hand, who could claim Syria to be governed responsibly? It is the regime itself which has and continues to commit atrocities on a scale the rebels and their Islamist guests likely would never hope to emulate, nor possibly, wish to.

The Syrian air force has unleashed fresh waves of barrel bombs on Aleppo, and the accusation of Mr. Safi that the government is carrying out "war crimes" may be an understatement. The makeshift barrel bombs dropped in opposition-held areas, particularly Aleppo and the Damascus suburb of Daraya have been devastating and disheartening in the annals of human suffering, and government responsibility denied.

Raids in Aleppo have triggered a flood of refugees from rebel-held areas

The second round of 'peace talks' seem even more fraught than the first, where Mr. Brahimi had pressed for an agreement on delivering humanitarian aid to the starving Sunni opposition-held areas of the country, and an evacuation of civilians from Homs. Both were disrupted by heavy fire coming from regime forces. By Sunday, despite the danger to Syrian Arab Red Crescent volunteers over 600 people were rescued.

But the fate of boys and men taken into 'protective custody' during the evacuation process by the Syrian military is a huge unknown. Judging from past events, their treatment will not be one of charitable mercy, let alone respect for that Islamist-unknown quantity quaintly described by the West as "human rights".

The destitute, starving Palestinian refugees housed in the refugee camp of Yarmouk, near Damascus will remain starving. UN food parcel convoys meant to reach them through the Syrian military siege, were met with disruptive violence. They represent to the merciless Syrian regime, after all, not desperate men, women and children approaching death through starvation, but "terrorists" for whom death is a deserved fate.

Labels: Conflict, Negotiations, Refugees, Syria, United Nations

posted by Pieface @ Tuesday, February 11, 2014