GENEVA, Switerland. The head of radical Islamist group Jaysh al-Islam, Mohammed Alloush, stressed on Saturday that he thinks a peaceful political transition in Syria is only possible if Syrian President Bashar Assad steps down or is killed.
He said: “We consider that the transitional period starts with the fall of Bashar al-Assad or his death. There’s no possibility to start this period with the presence of this regime or the head of this regime in the power,” Alloush told journalists in Geneva, where the Saudi-backed jihadist leader arrived as the chosen chief negotiator for the Syrian opposition.
Syrian Foreign Minister Walid al-Moualem stressed on the same day that the Damascus delegation will “reject”any notion of putting Assad’s fate on talks’ agenda, advising groups having such “delusions” that they “shouldn’t come to the talks.”
Alloush has dismissed Moualem’s statement as “worthless.” The new round of Syrian peace talks are set to start in Geneva on Monday.
Credit: RT
