Reuters has some more details about the final statement agreed by the participants in the Syrian opposition meeting in Riyadh this afternoon:
The participants at the Riyadh meeting backed a "democratic mechanism through a pluralistic regime that represents all sectors of the Syrian people," the statement said.
This would include women and would not discriminate on religious, sectarian or ethic grounds, it added. The participants also committed to preserving Syria's state institutions and restructuring the army and security services.
One of the guns linked to Islamist militants who carried out the November 13 Paris attacks was exported to the United States in 2013, according to the head of a Serbian arms factory, AP reports.
Syrian opposition groups have called on the United Nations to urge Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's government to take goodwill measures ahead of proposed peace talks, Saudi state news agency SPA has said.
The proposed confidence-building measures include releasing prisoners, suspending death sentences against Syrians convicted on charges of opposing the regime and allowing humanitarian convoys to reach those in need, SPA reported.
Here's some details from our news desk about Ahrar al-Sham pulling out of Syrian opposition talks:
Syrian Rebel Group Quits Opposition Unity Talks
A powerful Islamist rebel group has pulled out of talks with Syrian opposition politicians aimed at forming a unified front ahead of potential peace talks with President Bashar al-Assad.
The two-day conference in the Saudi capital, Riyadh, marked the first time most of the main rebel groups gathered together since the Syrian conflict began four and a half years ago. However, Al-Qaeda's affiliate in Syria, the Al-Nusra Front, and the Syrian Kurds were not invited.
A statement at the end of the talks on December 10 called for an all-inclusive, democratic civic state, said Assad should leave power at the start of a transitional period, and committed to preserving state institutions.
But the Ahrar al-Sham group said it had pulled out of the talks, citing the "main role" that Syria-based opposition figures had been given in a proposed leadership group.
It also said "revolutionary factions" were inadequately represented at the conference.
(Reuters, BBC)
Not a bad little primer if you're having a hard time keeping up:
More possible developments concerning Ahrar al-Sham:
This just in from RFE/RL' s news desk:
U.S.: Islamic State Finance Chief Killed In Air Strikes
WASHINGTON -- The United States says the Islamic State (IS) group's finance chief has been killed in air strikes by the U.S.-led coalition in recent weeks.
U.S. military spokesman Col Steve Warren said on December 10 that Abu Salah and two other senior leaders were killed in the strikes.
Warren called Abu Salah "one of the most senior and experienced members" of the militant group's financial network.
He said the two other IS militants killed included a senior leader responsible for coordinating the group's extortion activities and another who acted as an executive officer.
The IS group seized large swaths of Syria and Iraq in a lightning offensive in June 2014. The U.S.-led coalition has been carrying out air strikes against IS targets in the two countries for more than a year.
(With reporting by Reuters, BBC)
From our news desk:
Turkey: Withdrawal Of Troops From Iraq 'Out Of Question'
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has said his country has no intention of pulling out troops from northern Iraq.
"Withdrawal is out of the question for the time being," Erdogan told reporters on December 10.
Turkey has stationed troops near Mosul since 2014 as part of a training mission coordinated with the Baghdad government. The arrival of additional Turkish forces last week, however, sparked uproar in the Iraqi capital.
Erdogan insisted that the troops consist of a noncombative force.
He added that there would be a trilateral meeting between Turkey, the United States, and Iraq's semiautonomous Kurdish region on December 21.
On December 9, Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu said the Turkish soldiers were dispatched to northern Iraq after an increase in the threat to Turkish military trainers from Islamic State.
(AP, Reuters)
Here's another item from our news desk:
U.S. Muslim Advocacy Group's Headquarters Evacuated
The Washington headquarters of a leading Muslim organization in the United States has been evacuated after the discovery of a "suspicious" substance in the mail.
Maha Sayed, staff attorney for the Council on American Islamic Relations (CAIR), said the office received an envelope on December 10 containing a note that read, "Die a painful death, Muslims," and a white powder.
CAIR Executive Director Nihad Awad said two employees were quarantined inside the building. He said one was coughing and the other complained of a headache after the piece of post was opened.
CAIR spokesman Ibrahim Hooper later said employees were allowed back into their offices after tests showed that the suspicious substance was not harmful.
The incident follows last week’s mass shooting in San Bernardino, California, by a radicalized Muslim couple.
The CAIR describes itself as an "organization that challenges stereotypes of Islam and Muslims."
(Reuters, AP, BBC)