Iran Pushes Election Plan to End Syrian Civil War

'Six Point Plan' Calls for Immediate Ceasefire, End to Foreign Arms Flow

The Iranian government has unveiled its “six point plan” during the opening of a new conference on the Syrian Civil War, urging both sides to back a plan to end fighting and hold snap presidential elections.

The plan calls on both sides to halt fighting, and for the international community to throw its weight behind the deal, while ending arms shipments to all combatants inside Syria for the duration of talks.

The plan calls on the Assad government to immediately release all political prisoners as part of the deal, and for both sides and the international community to join together to begin reconstruction of cities damaged in the war.

The new plan is likely to be rejected out of hand by the US, which has insisted no plan involving Iran could ever be acceptable. Calls for talks seem to have renewed interest, however, with Syrian Vice President Farouq al-Sharaa saying he believes the fight is stalemated and talks are the only way forward.

Author: Jason Ditz

Jason Ditz is Senior Editor for Antiwar.com. He has 20 years of experience in foreign policy research and his work has appeared in The American Conservative, Responsible Statecraft, Forbes, Toronto Star, Minneapolis Star-Tribune, Providence Journal, Washington Times, and the Detroit Free Press.