CAIRO
Arab League Secretary-General Nabil al-Arabi has said that both the government and opposition in war-torn Syria had failed to find common ground during the second round of the Geneva II talks.
"Regrettably, the ongoing Geneva [II] talks haven't yet achieved their objectives," al-Arabi told members of the pan-Arab body's Economic and Social Council on Thursday.
Al-Arabi stressed the need to stop Syrian infighting, adding that the Arab League was currently focusing its efforts on the swift transfer of humanitarian aid to the afflicted Syrian people.
With the first round of talks ending in deadlock late last month, Geneva II's second round kicked off in Switzerland on February 10.
The Syrian opposition demands the departure of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, while the latter's regime insists on the need to combat "terrorism."
Syria has been in the throes of conflict since 2011, when a peaceful uprising against al-Assad escalated into civil war following a violent government crackdown.
According to the London-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, more than 136,000 people have been killed since the beginning of the conflict.
By Khaled Abdel-Aziz
englishnews@aa.com.tr
