UN Envoy met Syrian Internal Opposition Figures

On February 16, the UN Special Envoy for Syria Staffan de Mistura met a delegation of the Syrian national internal opposition in Damascus.

The delegation included Mahmud Marai and Mes al-Kredi from the National Democratic Action Committee in Syria, Sheikh Nawaf al-Milhem, Chairman of People party, Suheer Sarmeni Deputy Chairman of Syrian National Youth party, Dr. Elian Misa’ad, Chairman of the National Conference for Syria, Tariq al-Ahmed from the Syrian Social Nationalist Party and Baroen Ibrahim, Chairperson of the National Youth for Development and Justice Party.

The seven figures were invited in the name of internal opposition to the Geneva talks last month. The one-hour meeting tackles the preparation of Geneva3 talks and the participation of the internal opposition figures in the delegations of oppositions.

Mahmoud Marai, the Secretary General of the Damascus –based opposition National Democratic Action Committee in Syria said to  the Syria Times about the main meeting topics:

We (the seven figures) discussed six points with the UN Special Envoy for Syria Staffan de Mistura. The first point is the necessity of participation of the internal opposition in Geneva3 in addition to the participation of women and Civil Society organizations. The second point is the call to end the economic sanctions on Syria. The third point is to denounce any Saudi-Turkey military intervention and bombardments on the Syrian land

 The fourth point is to deliver relief aids to all Syrian areas without any exception because we don’t accept to see any Syrian citizen to die because of shortage of food and medicine.

The fifth point is that the Riyadh opposition delegation had foiled Geneva3 talks by putting preconditions on the Syrian-Syrian dialogue. The Riyadh delegation is implementing Arab, regional and international agendas not a Syrian agenda, added Marai.

Marai said that the UN Special Envoy for Syria Staffan de Mistura promised the delegation members that he will work to address invitations to the Syrian internal opposition to represent the expanded opposition groups according to the United Nation Security Consul 2254 and Vienna and Munich Communiqués.

Anas Joudeh , Chairman of  the opposition Nation Building Movement, criticized the UN Special Envoy for Syria Staffan de Mistura’s position from the official invitations to the Syrian opposition delegations.

Joudeh said that di Mistura surrendered to big pressures from states which consider the Riyadh opposition delegation as ‘ the only opposition delegation’.

Jamal Abdo, a Syrian opposition figure form the People’s Will Party,  told the Syria Times that de Mistura refused to invite five Kurdish figures including Saleh Muslim, the leader of PYD, because of the Turkish veto. The five Kurdish figures were out of the 15 members in opposition Secular and Democratic Delegation to Geneva3.

Abdo said the opposition delegation to Geneva3 should not only include the Riyadh opposition delegation and must represent figures from the Moscow and Cairo opposition meetings according to the UNSC 2254.

 By Obiada al-Mohammad