Syrian opposition in Geneva calls for stopping Assad

GENEVA

It is time to say no to Bashar al-Assad regime, spokesman for Syrian opposition delegation in Geneva told Anadolu Agency Thursday, hinting that the latest round of peace talks may yet again be futile.

The latest round of peace talks began Wednesday.

In an interview, Syrian opposition High Negotiations Committee (HNC) spokesman Salem al-Meslet said: "We are not here to waste time, Syrian people want change and the change is coming very soon.”

Al-Meslet blamed the regime for any failures in the talks.

"We are here to make these talks successful. We do not have a serious partner. We know that the regime is driving the peace talks to collapse. We are here to find a political solution. From day one, the regime is trying to push the talks somewhere you cannot find any solution," he said.

He, however, hoped that a solution to the crisis would be found soon, but made it clear that Assad should no longer be accommodated. "Hopefully, we [will] reach a solution with the help of our friends. It is about time to say no to Assad, to say no to dictatorship and to say no to terrorism in Syria," he said.

He also claimed that the recent incidents in Syria expose the links between Assad regime and Daesh. "What is going on in [Syrian city] Aleppo and what really took place in [ancient Syrian city of] Palmyra before, it proves there is a connection between Daesh and regime," he said.

"[By retreating its forces from Palmyra] Daesh is giving back to regime. Daesh is doing what regime wants. We should put an end to this. The connection is clear between Daesh and regime," he claimed.

He also requested help from friendly countries to help the opposition. "In Aleppo, moderate groups are doing good job. We request our brothers Turkey and Saudi to help Syrians protect their cities," he said.

About Turkey's efforts in the peace talks, al-Muslet said: "Turkey has done very great things for Syrians and they opened their hearts before their borders for Syrians.

"There are millions of Syrians in Turkey now and Turkey is really paying high price for that. Some terrorist acts took place in there by Daesh and the regime. But, Turkey insists on helping Syrians and standing beside Syrian people."

He also hoped that the conflict ends soon so that neighbors like Turkey also get some relief. "We are really worried [that] if this takes long in Syria, how this [will] affect Turkey. Hopefully, we will end this in Syria very soon," he said.

The Syrian regime delegation is expected to arrive in Geneva to join the Syria talks Friday after they requested to resume the process after parliamentary elections were held in Syria Wednesday.

In March, at the end of the previous round of talks, de Mistura handed a document to the Syrian regime and opposition in Geneva, outlining basic principles for a political solution to the Syria crisis. He said that neither the regime delegation nor the opposition delegation had rejected this document.

Syria has been locked in a vicious civil war since early 2011, when the Bashar Assad regime cracked down on pro-democracy protests with unexpected ferocity.

Since then, more than 250,000 people have been killed and more than 10 million displaced, according to the UN.