UN Special Envoy for Syria, Staffan de Mistura is giving a press conference in Geneva to update on the situation surrounding the (postponed) Syrian peace talks.
Here are some key points from the question and answer session:
- Everything will be based on the Geneva Communique
- The working groups don't exist any more, we have only one intra Syrian talks about three issues: governance, constitution, new elections. Syrians want to hear about cease fire and humanitarian aid. This does not mean that during the talks we won't establish specialist working groups.
- Q: how many delegations will there be? A: This will be part of creativity of proximity talks. There will be a lot of shuffling between groups, because there are a lot of civil society and women's groups that deserve to be heard. So you can have quite a lot of simultaneous meetings taking place.
- In terms of vision, things may go faster or slower. There will be a lot of posturing, a lot of walk out or walk ins because a bomb has fallen or someone has done an attack, we should not be impressed or shocked. The first part of the talks should last 2-3 weeks, then the various interlocutors can consult their supporters and prepare for next stage. Name of the game is to be as flexible as possible.
- Q: will the talks definitely go ahead on Friday? A: We are definitely going to aim to start on Jan. 29, invitations will be sent tomorrow. Proximity talks does not mean opening ceremony.
- Q: Will Ahrar al-Sham and Islam Army be on list of invitations? A: I'm going to send invitations based on the mandate given by Security Council tomorrow.
- Probably there is a much better understanding by those who insist on preconditions -- e.g. list of who is a terrorist -- that what matters is starting the talks with some sort of minimal understanding. Security Council is telling me (re terrorists) IS and Al-Nusra [Al-Qaeda's Syrian affiliate]
UN Special Envoy for Syria, Staffan de Mistura is giving a press conference in Geneva to update on the situation surrounding the (postponed) Syrian peace talks.
Here are some key points:
- There has been very different opinions and positions regarding list of invitations, this has been the issue and stalemate so far
- Discussions between Kerry, Lavrov, foreign ministers of region which are ongoing
- I am very much aware of danger of what happened in Geneva II
- That's why I am particularly careful about issue of invitations to make sure we don't have a repetition of Geneva II
- We want to make sure when and if we start we start on the right foot, it will be uphill anyway
- Security Council 2254 is very clear -- I am assigned task to finalize efforts of list of Syrian participants. That is my mandate. Also this resolution urges me to bring broadest possible spectrum of opposition
- Due to intense disagreements over who should be on the list the talks have been delayed. Today instead of announcing beginning of talks I am announcing the date in which we will be in a position to send invitations -- tomorrow (January 26).
- Date on which we are aiming to begin talks -- Jan. 29
- We will make sure there is a substantial presence of women.
- Agenda will be already set up about new governance, new constitution and new elections
- The first priority will be the possibility of broad cease fire, stopping threat of IS, increase of humanitarian aid.
- Tomorrow there will be official press conference from UN's humanitarian side to explain how urgent and how important this is.
- No opening ceremony.
- We will aim at proximity talks starting on Jan 29 and ongoing for six months.
- This is how we will try to make it different from the past -- this is not Geneva III.
- There are political risks.
- No preconditions at least to start the talks.
- Time has come to at least try hard to produce an outcome.
UN Special Envoy for Syria, Staffan de Mistura is giving a press conference in Geneva to update on the situation surrounding the (postponed) Syrian peace talks.
Here are some key points:
- Invitations will be sent out tomorrow, Jan. 26
- Talks to start on Jan. 29 if all goes to plan.
UN Special Envoy for Syria, Staffan de Mistura is about to give an update on the Syrian peace talks -- watch live here.
Every Reason To Expect IS Will Attack In Europe Again: Interpol Report
Europol has published a new report today, titled "Changes in Modus Operandi of Islamic State Terrorist attacks." The report can be downloaded from the link in Interpol's tweet below, but here are some of the key points:
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Europol say that there "is every reason to expect that IS, IS inspired terrorists or another religiously inspired terrorist group will undertake a terrorist attack somewhere in Europe again, but particularly in France, intended to cause mass casualties amongst the civilian population."
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For foreign militants joining IS, the religious component in recruitment and radicalization is being replaced by more social elements such as peer pressure and role modeling.
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A significant portion of foreign fighters have been diagnosed with mental problems or have criminal records prior to joining IS.
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The nature and structure of IS training apparently enables its operatives to execute terrorist acts in an emotionally detached manner, as demonstrated in the Paris attacks.
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Intelligence suggests that IS has developed an external actions command trained for ‘special forces style’ operations abroad, to include the EU and France in particular.
EU Opens New Counterterrorism Center
The European Union has opened a new counterterrorism center to fight violent extremism, according to the Associated Press.
Europol director Rob Wainwright said the unit in The Hague, Netherlands will be staffed by 40-50 experts in counterterrorism and deal in intelligence-sharing, tracking foreign fighters and sources of illegal financing and firearms, and assisting EU countries in counterterrorism investigations.
Wainwright said over 5,000 EU nationals have been radicalized by fighting with Muslim extremists in Iraq and Syria, and that many have returned home.
British Mother Who Went To Syria Denies Tweeting Support For IS Militants
A British mother on trial accused of joining the IS group in Syria has denied tweeting support for the extremist group.
Tareena Shakil, 26, left the UK in 2014 with her young son and went to live in IS's Syrian stronghold of Raqqa. A few months later she returned to the UK saying that she had made a mistake.
Shakil, who denies joining the IS group, says that she did not directly tweet support for the IS group.
She was asked why she retweeted messages that blended phrases from the Koran and images of groups of jihadi fighters.
She replied: "If you are saying Koranic passages encourage terrorism ... if that is the case every Muslim would be a terrorist."
"Where is the messages where I encourage any act of terrorism, where are the messages where I glorify any act of terrorism?" she asked the prosecutor.
Suicide Attack Targets Ahrar al-Sham Militants In Aleppo: Monitor
A suicide bomber driving a fuel tank blew himself up earlier today at a checkpoint run by the hardline Islamist group Ahrar al-Sham in Aleppo city, killing at least seven fighters, the Britain-based monitoring group Syrian Observatory for Human Rights has said.
According to SOHR, four Ahrar al-Sham commanders are believed to be among those killed.
There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the attack.
Russia's Favorite 'Syrian Opposition' Politician Calls For Talks To Start
Qadri Jamil, a member of Syria's Popular Will party, has called for Syrian peace talks to start, reports RIA Novosti, which describes Jamil as a "representative of the Syrian opposition."
Jamil, who was kicked out of the Syrian parliament in August, has been described as "Russia's man in Damascus" who was originally a leading member of a Syrian government friendly, Moscow-backed branch of the Syrian Communist Party and was seen as a favorite of the Russian government, according to Aron Lund of the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace.
In 2012–2013, Jamil’s name was often mentioned in speculation about who could serve in a hypothetical Syrian unity government and, even less plausibly, as Russia’s pick for future president of Syria. He basked in the attention and was frequently quoted in the media.
Lund notes that Jamil has:
contributed energetically to the Russian attempts to mold a pro-Moscow bloc of moderate opposition members. He was a prominent participant in the Moscow opposition conferences organized in early 2015, when Syrian state news again found occasion to approvingly cite the views of Mr. Qadri Jamil, “opposition figure.”
Now it seems Jamil is being useful for Moscow and Damascus yet again -- as a voice of the "Syrian opposition."