In Gulf, Kerry calls for united front against IS

In Abu Dhabi, US Secretary of State John Kerry stresses the urgent need to unite a region riven by conflict against the threat from the jihadist Islamic State group.

Kerry believes his ambitious plan to bring Syria’s other warring parties to the negotiating table is the key to isolating and ultimately defeating the extremists.

So he came to Abu Dhabi to encourage his Emirati and Saudi allies in their efforts to convince Syria’s rebel factions to agree a ceasefire with Bashar Assad’s regime, he says.

“That’s why I’m here,” he tells reporters, repeating his hope that a ceasefire between the opposition and the government could be struck “in a few weeks.”

“We’re working very hard to accelerate the efforts out of Vienna, to give that diplomatic process life,” he says. “You can be confident that the diplomatic front is in high gear, with a very real plan on the table to be implemented.”

— AFP

Standing without shoes as a sign of respect in the mosque, US Secretary of State John Kerry (L) and United Arab Emirates Foreign Minister, Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed al-Nahyan, speak to the media after touring the Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque in Abu Dhabi on November 23, 2015 (AFP / POOL / JACQUELYN MARTIN)