From the Liveblog of
Wednesday, January 18, 2017
Key rebel group to stay away from Syria peace talks
Key rebel group Ahrar al-Sham says it will not take part in peace talks in the Kazakh capital next week aimed at ending Syria’s nearly six-year-old war.
The announcement comes as Russia and Turkey — which along with Iran organized the talks starting in Astana on Monday — carries out their first joint airstrikes against the Islamic State jihadist group in the war-torn country.
Ahrar al-Sham, which counts thousands of fighters in central and northern Syria, says it will not attend the Astana talks due to “the lack of implementation of the ceasefire” in force since December 30 and ongoing Russian airstrikes over Syria.
The Islamist faction was among the signatories of the ceasefire deal that does not include IS and Fateh al-Sham, which changed its name from Al-Nusra Front after breaking ties with al-Qaeda.
— AFP
The Times of Israel Community.