U.S. Ambassador Says Syria's Islamic Front Rejects Talks
إقرأ هذا الخبر بالعربية
The U.S. ambassador to Damascus has said a newly formed Islamist alliance in war-torn Syria has refused to meet with American officials, in an interview aired Wednesday on Al-Arabiya television.
"The Islamic Front has refused to sit with us without giving any reason," Robert Ford said, a day after U.S. State Secretary John Kerry described as "possible" a meeting with Syria's biggest rebel alliance.
"We are ready to sit with them because we talk to all parties and political groups in Syria," Ford was quoted as saying on the Dubai-based channel's Arabic website.
Ford returned to Washington in February 2012 after rising security problems forced the closure of the U.S. embassy in the Syrian capital.
Six opposition groups came together last month to form the Islamic Front, which brings together tens of thousands of fighters and seeks to oust President Bashar Assad and establish an Islamic state in Syria.
Last week, the Front overran the northern headquarters and two warehouses belonging to the U.S.-backed Free Syrian Army, prompting Washington to cut off non-lethal aid to the main secular military opposition in the north.
In Washington, State Department deputy spokeswoman Marie Harf said earlier that if a meeting with the Front did take place, the United States would expect the return of its stolen non-lethal assistance.
Washington has said it is already meeting with a broad section of Syrian groups to try to end the nearly three-year war through negotiations, but has explicitly ruled out any contacts with those linked to al-Qaida or designated as terrorists by the U.S.
Last month, the Islamic Front said it wanted to set up an Islamic state in Syria, but insisted it would protect minorities and not create an "oppressive, authoritarian system".
Syria's uprising began as a series of peaceful pro-democracy protests in March 2011, but a brutal regime crackdown ignited a full-blown civil war in which hardline Islamist groups have taken on an increasingly prominent role.
18 December 2013, 13:08
30
wait u and ur khomeynists friends are telling us for ages they're arming the rebels...
18 December 2013, 14:25
03
they are cedre, this is why i'm saying they are playing comedy here, pretending they are not talking.
it's not just me or "khomeynists" saying it, the whole world knows and the US doesnt even try to hide it. they officially send armored vehicles, communication equipment, kevlar vests, night vision goggles etc, etc to the rebels. they call that "non-lethal" help.
18 December 2013, 14:36
20
movaten if they're arming them how come i dont see m16/fn fal, milan atgw like in libya ? how come usa speak about non lethal aid, ie soon to expire noodle pots and MREs, how come CIA stop MANPADS deliveries giving assad air superiority and thus siding de facto with him ? how come rebels complain of lack of ammo ? why are USA putting pressure on jordan and turkey to stop arming rebels ?
18 December 2013, 14:39
20
armored vehicles and NVG... wow thats hardcore almanar/sana/irna bs...any proof ? pictures/videos will do...
18 December 2013, 16:20
02
you want proof? last time i asked you some you ran off, but i'm the better person so here goes:
just wondering, you prefer iranian medias
"Non-lethal US aid provided to the rebels has included armoured vehicles, night vision goggles, medicines and advanced communications equipment."
http://www.skynews.com.au/world/article.aspx?id=933350
or hardcore almanar?
"The hold on supplies of non-military assistance such as body armour, communications equipment and, in the American case, armoured vehicles"
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/middleeast/syria/10510498/Britain-and-US-suspend-non-lethal-aid-to-Syrian-rebels.html
18 December 2013, 17:09
10
Mowaten just posting some articles from internet said by officials proofs nothing. All those video clips, photos and everything I didn't see one single Humvee or any kind of armored vehicles in the hands of rebels. All I saw were Isuzu, Kea, and Suzuki kind of garbage pickup trucks that Nusra Monkeys were on the back with that black shit flag blowing and them priding themselves. Honestly, talk with logic and facts that you see on the ground. Not even one heavy duty Rocket launchers they got. May be they get communication devices and some logistic advices.
