Friends of Syria meet as conflict escalates

Backers of the Syrian uprising were to meet in Amman with the opposition Wednesday to discuss a US-Russian proposal for peace talks, as the two-year conflict escalated close to the border with Lebanon. "Today's effort ... is part of a political path aimed at ending the violence and bloodshed," Jordanian Foreign Minister Nasser Judeh told a joint news conference with British Foreign Secretary William Hague before the meeting of the so-called Friends of Syria group. Judeh said the US-Russian proposal was a "turning point." Earlier this month, the United States and Russia, which back opposite sides in the Syrian conflict, proposed a peace conference dubbed Geneva 2 to bring together rebels and representatives of President Bashar al-Assad's regime. "The humanitarian crisis underlines the urgency of reaching a political solution and a diplomatic breakthrough," Hague said. Eleven top diplomats from Britain, Egypt, France, Germany, Italy, Jordan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, the United Arab Emirates and the United States are attending the meeting. After initial uncertainty, the acting head of Syria's opposition National Coalition is to attend the Amman meeting and will be represented by its interim president George Sabra, coalition spokesman Soner Ahmed told AFP. "The Coalition received a late invitation and has confirmed its participation," he said. Meanwhile, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, whose country does not take part in Friends of Syria meetings, was to host Syrian Deputy Foreign Minister Faisal Muqdad for talks Wednesday on the planned conference, Russia's RIA Novosti state news agency said. On the arms embargo on Syria, Hague said: "The decision we need to take in Europe in the next days is about the rules of this embargo. Decisions about sending lethal equipment (to the rebels) is a different matter." He said the issue would be discussed with the opposition later on Wednesday. Ahead of Amman's meeting, US Secretary of State John Kerry was also to hold a news conference. "One of the things we'll be talking about here in Amman... is what else needs to be done with respect to the military balance on the ground," a top US official said, urging the Syrian opposition to unify ranks. A French diplomatic source said the proposed Geneva conference "comes at a time when the regime is taking the lead on the ground as its supporters are getting more and more involved." But while the regime has reportedly already proposed the names of several potential envoys to the mooted conference, the opposition has yet to decide whether it will attend. The National Coalition is to meet later this week in Istanbul, where it is expected to hammer out its stance on the peace effort and take decisions on its leadership. The diplomatic drive comes against the backdrop of a major push by Syrian regime forces and its allies to retake the rebel stronghold of Qusayr in central Homs province bordering Lebanon. The battle for the town, which lies between Damascus and the Mediterranean coast, is drawing in neighbouring Lebanon, with the country's powerful Shiite movement Hezbollah dispatching its fighters to bolster regime troops. Syria's opposition urged fighters across the country to "rush to the rescue" of Qusayr and appealed to the international community to set up a humanitarian corridor to the embattled town. "The Syrian regime is receiving help from Hezbollah and Iran. That's an increasing threat to regional stability," Hague told reporters. "If the regime were to think they can win a military victory and goes back to whatever was normal before, I think they will be making a terrible error, a catastrophic error. They need a political solution." The battle in Qusayr has raised tensions in the Sunni-majority Lebanese town of Tripoli, home to a minority of Alawites, the Shiite offshoot to which Assad belongs. As the Qusayr offensive began on Sunday, clashes erupted in the northern Lebanese city of Tripoli. At least six people have died since then. On Tuesday, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said over 100 people had been killed in the fighting in Qusayr since the assault started, including 31 Hezbollah fighters, 70 rebels and nine soldiers. The group says a total of over 90,000 people have been killed since the Syria conflict began in March 2011.