– Syria peace talks hit trouble after Damascus blast kills 60
– Syria’s indirect peace talks likely to be delayed
– Russian air force continues bombing ‘terrorists’ in Syria
– Jordan PM links Syrian refugee admissions to foreign aid
– Turkey warns Russia after alleging new airspace breach
Syria peace talks hit trouble after Damascus blast kills 60
Syria’s main opposition group met UN mediator Staffan de Mistura for the first time on Sunday, but the peace process ran straight into trouble after Islamic State (ISIS or ISIL) bombers killed more than 60 people near the country’s holiest Shia shrine. Representatives of the Saudi-backed Higher Negotiation Committee, which includes political and militant opponents of President Bashar al-Assad, warned they may yet walk away from the Geneva talks unless the suffering of civilians is eased. The head of the Syrian government delegation retorted that the blasts in Damascus, which the Interior Ministry blamed on a car bomb and two suicide bombers, merely confirmed the link between the opposition and terrorism even though ISIS has been excluded from the talks. [Reuters, Al Arabiya, 1/31/2016]
Syria’s indirect peace talks likely to be delayed
A spokeswoman for UN envoy Staffan de Mistura Khawla Mattar says indirect talks between the Syrian government and the opposition are likely to be delayed. She did not elaborate, saying only that the talks are unlikely to begin Monday. Secretary of State John Kerry is imploring Syria’s government and rebels to take advantage of UN-sponsored peace negotiations. Kerry, the diplomatic effort’s main architect, says the nearly five-year war must end. He says a ceasefire would allow all to focus on defeating ISIS. The Higher Negotiation Committee says it will not engage in the talks until several preconditions are met. The rebels also have deep reservations about the negotiation process. Syria’s warring sides on Sunday exchanged accusations; the opposition accused President Bashar al-Assad’s regime of working to ensure Geneva talks fails. Mattar said it was necessary for de Mistura to meet with the opposition first and that a meeting with the government would happen later. [AP, 2/1/2016]
Russian air force continues bombing ‘terrorists’ in Syria
Russia’s air force has carried out 468 sorties in Syria over the past week, hitting more than 1,300 “terrorist” targets, Russian news agencies quoted Russia’s Defense Ministry as saying on Monday. The Defense Ministry also reportedly delivered more than 200 tonnes of humanitarian aid to the besieged Syrian town of Deir Ezzor in January. Russia is strengthening all types of reconnaissance in the Middle East to better locate terrorist targets and hit them faster, Defense Ministry Spokesman Igor Konashenkov was quoted as saying. Meanwhile Russia’s air forces have destroyed a stash of oil products belonging to Islamist group Jaysh al-Islam in the Syrian province of Damascus, Konashekov stated on Monday. Russian air strikes on Syria have killed nearly 1,400 civilians since Moscow started its aerial campaign nearly four months ago, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) said on Saturday. [Reuters, 2/1/2016]
Jordan PM links Syrian refugee admissions to foreign aid
Jordanian Prime Minister Abdullah Ensour warned Saturday that it would be difficult to keep absorbing Syrian refugees unless his country receives significant economic aid and easier access to European markets. Ensour made the link between refugee admissions and aid on Saturday, during a visit to the UN-run Azraq refugee camp. He spoke ahead of next week’s Syria conference where pledges of $9 billion are being sought for 2016 to alleviate the fallout from the civil war. The number of Syrian refugees stranded on Jordan’s border and waiting for permission to enter has risen to 20,000, with 4,000 to 5,000 more arriving in the remote desert area every month. Jordan has recently only permitted several dozen refugees to enter each day, leading to rapidly growing crowds of Syrians, including women and children, who are stuck in two areas along the Syrian-Jordanian border. [AP, 1/31/16]
Turkey warns Russia after alleging new airspace breach
Turkey on Friday accused Russia of violating its airspace for the second time in recent months. Turkey’s foreign ministry said in a statement that a SU-34 Russian fighter jet entered the country’s airspace at 11:46 a.m. on Friday after radar units warned it to turn back in English and Russian. “We once again explicitly call on Russia to act responsibly and not to violate Turkish Airspace, which is NATO airspace,” the foreign ministry said in a statement. “We underline that such actions could lead to serious consequences, the responsibility of which will totally rest with the Russian Federation.” Russian officials have dismissed the claims as baseless propaganda and Defense Ministry Spokesman Igor Konashenkov said, “There has not been a single violation of Turkish airspace by Russia air force planes in Syria. On Saturday, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg called on Russia “to act responsibly and to fully respect NATO airspace.” He said, “Russia must take all necessary measures to ensure that such violations do not happen again.” [Al Jazeera, NYT, Guardian, AP, Hurriyet, 1/30/2016]