Politics

Syrian opposition delegation meets with Arab League chief: KNC official

"The Etilaf delegation emphasized the need for a democratic Syria in which the rights of all its constituents, including Arabs, Kurds, Syrians, Assyrians and Turkmen, are protected"

Wladimir van Wilgenburg 2021/09/23 15:21

Abdul Hakim Bashar, vice-president of the National Coalition of Syrian Revolution and Opposition Forces, with the Secretary-General of the League of Arab States, September 22, New York (Photo: Abdul Hakim Bashar)

Syria PYD KNC Syrian opposition National Coalition of Syrian Revolution and Opposition Forces SDF

ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) - A joint delegation of the National Coalition of Syrian Revolution and Opposition Forces (known in Arabic as Etilaf) and the Syrian opposition’s Higher Negotiations Committee met with Secretary-General of the League of Arab States Ahmed Aboul Gheit in New York and discussed the situation in Syria on Sunday.

Abdul Hakim Bashar, vice-president of the National Coalition of Syrian Revolution and Opposition Forces and a member of the Kurdish National Council (KNC), told Kurdistan 24 that the opposition delegation spoke about the stalled political process in Syria and the suffering of the Syrian people.

"The Etilaf delegation emphasized the need for a democratic Syria in which the rights of all its constituents, including Arabs, Kurds, Syrians, Assyrians and Turkmen, are protected," he told Kurdistan 24.

Bashar, said that Aboul Gheit stressed that the rights of Arabs, Kurds and other components should be respected.

Aboul Gheit also stressed that the Syrian issue is very complicated and linked to US-Russian negotiations.

World leaders are participating in the 76th United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) session this week.

The Kurdish National Council (KNC), which is part of the Syrian opposition, will be part of a delegation from the Syrian opposition that will meet UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres and other officials in New York for the 76th United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) session.

Separately, a delegation of the Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria (AANES) also arrived in Washington DC this week. It is expected to meet with US officials to also discuss the Syria crisis.

The KNC, which is part of the Turkey-based Syrian Arab opposition, has been in several political disputes with the local administration of Syria’s Kurdish-held northern areas, led by the Democratic Union Party (PYD).

The two parties previously held talks for several months following an initiative by Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) Commander-in-Chief Mazloum Abdi since 2020 to resolve their long-standing disputes after Turkey’s cross-border offensive into northern Syria in October 2019.

However, since the November 2021 US presidential elections, the talks have been suspended. US officials have recently held separate meetings with both sides and underlined continued support for the intra-Kurdish dialogue.