After days of loudly condemning the Syrian military for an offensive against al-Qaeda controlled territory south of the city of Aleppo, the Syrian rebel negotiating team in Geneva has withdrawn from the UN-brokered peace talks.
Officials are presenting this simply as a “postponement” of the talks, and say that the rebel negotiators will remain in Geneva for now, with the possibility of returning to the talks, though top negotiator Mohammed Alloush inssisted there was “no way” they’d return.
The US and Russia brokered ceasefire deal explicitly excluded both ISIS and al-Qaeda’s Nusra Front, to allow the ceasefire parties to continue offensives against those factions. Nusra, however, has close ties to several Islamist rebel factions, and those rebels are treating attacks on Nusra as attacks on the rebellion.
The US appears to be endorsing the rebels’ decision to withdraw from the talks, demanding that Russia use its influence to stop Syria’s ongoing offensive against Nusra territory. Other Western diplomats, however, warn that if the talks collapse over this, the rebels will be blamed.
Jason Ditz summarized the Reuters article inaccurately:
The U.S. isn’t trying to back or defend al-Nusra. Its official policy is to fight al-Nusra, that’s one reason why the U.S. is in Syria: to combat the alleged “extremists” including al-Nusra. The U.S. has been doing airstrikes targeting al-Nusra since they invaded Syria.
In the Reuters article the Syrian government states that the territory was held by al-Nusra for the reason they attacked (al-Nusra is not included in th ceasefire). The U.S. urges Russia and Syria to stop attacking not because they are protecting al-Nusra but because they believe that the Russians are lying that the territory was held by al-Nusra.
the key War Aim of the American regime is the overthrow of the Syrian government and replacement by an American client one.
A lNusra are the Assets of Washington and being used as a False Flag operation
Jason,
PLEASE get the story eight, instead of AntiWar.com repeating your Regime’s propaganda.
Al Nusra are Washington “Assets” and working for them.
They appear to be being used as a False Flag operation as “bad jihadists” as opposed to “good jihadists”.
Washington does not “back” their agents and “Assets” , nor are they an “Opposition”, they are paid salaried agents and Assets.
So let me get this right, Obama’s pet moderate cannibals are withdrawing from the talks because Syria is attacking al Qaeda. And they are Obama’s pet moderate cannibals.
I presume this tantrum is also about the success of the elections in Syria. The rebels are throwing a sissy fit because the world is starting to realise that Syria has become a democracy, whilst the rebels are a bunch of islamist throwbacks getting left behind by the modern world.