Special envoy Staffan de Mistura confirmed on Tuesday that Syrian opposition groups have agreed to take part in the next round of peace talks in Geneva on Thursday.
It will be the first time both government and opposition representatives have been present at the talks, which are designed to find a political solution to a civil war that has raged for six years and claimed around 400,000 lives.
A climate of mutual distrust had meant that each side had previously spoken separately with de Mistura.
The opposition groups’ assent means talks will begin as planned.
The talks are expected to last until April 1.
Matters that would be discussed will be the creation of a nationally unified government, a new constitution, elections and anti-terrorism measures.
NAN recalls that on Feb. 20, the Syrian opposition sent a team to UN-sponsored peace talks with the government in Geneva.
The 21-member delegation was led by Nasr al-Hariri of the Western-backed Syrian National Coalition, the Higher Negotiations Committee (HNC), an opposition grouping, said late Saturday after a two-day meeting in Saudi Arabia.
Half of the delegation represent the opposition forces fighting on the ground, the HNC said in a statement.
The team will be backed by a 21-member panel of political, legal and military specialists, it added.
The opposition bloc also called for international efforts to shore up a fragile ceasefire that went into effect in Syria in late December.
Syria’s conflict, which started with peaceful anti-government demonstrations in March 2011, spiralled into a full-blown war that has claimed more than 300,000 lives and driven about half the pre-war population of 22 million from their homes.(dpa
