Syrian opposition seek to heal deep divisons in Istanbul

Syria's fractured opposition is to meet Saturday in Istanbul for key talks to decide whether or not to attend a peace conference that western powers want to hold in Geneva. Before they decide whether to attend the talks -- aimed at launching negotiations between President Bashar al-Assad's regime and its opponents -- bitter rival camps in the opposition must first seek a united front, United Nations-Arab League envoy Lakhdar Brahimi warned this week. "There should be two delegations from Syria for Geneva 2 -- the government and the opposition," Brahimi said on Tuesday. But, he added, "the opposition is divided and not ready... the opposition has problems". Syria's opposition has long been plagued by disunity. The main umbrella opposition, the National Coalition -- which depends on foreign backing -- has been marred by regional rivalries that play out through disagreements among its members. It suffers from a lack of credibility in the eyes of both its allies and the various rebel groups fighting on the ground. Some rebel leaders believe that no negotiations are possible with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad remaining in power and have for weeks resisted the idea of peace talks. No date has yet been agreed for the conference, dubbed Geneva 2, at which world powers hope to gather delegates from the warring parties, as well as regional Arab states, before the end of the year, according to Brahimi. "We are leaning towards not taking part in the conference," said Samir Nashar, a member of the Coalition. "Will that position change? I don’t know, but what I can say is that there’s intense (international) political action (pushing towards participation). "In politics everything is possible." Coalition leader Ahmat Jarba has imposed strict conditions for the opposition to take part, insisting that Assad's departure and regime change are on the table -- which the regime has rejected. Jarba is also demanding a ceasefire for the duration of the talks. The Syrian National Council -- a key component of the Coalition -- has outright refused to take part in talks, threatening to quit the Coalition if some of its members agree to go. Damascus too has appeared unwilling. Information Minister Omran al-Zohbi said this week the regime would refuse to go if it was "to hand over power as desired by (Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Saud) al-Faisal and certain opponents abroad". Though it remains doubtful the top brass will attend, a number of other officials have indicated they would travel to Switzerland. Former Syrian vice premier, Qadri Jamil, sacked last month for leaving the country and meeting US officials in Switzerland without goverment permission, said he would attend, as did a number of Kurdish delegates, who make up Syria's largest ethnic minority. Meanwhile Russian vice foreign minister Mikhail Bogdanov said that other opposition members have accepted an offer of informal talks in Moscow to precede the Geneva conference. The opposition has "rightful hesitations" about Geneva 2 including its format, and the future role of Assad, Turkey's foreign ministry said this week. "The London summit has answered these concerns... We are in constant touch with opposition at every level," ministry spokesman Levent Gumrukcu told reporters in Ankara, referring to a meeting of foreign ministers in Britain last month to help pave the way for Geneva 2. At that summit, 11 western and Arab nations from the Friends of Syria group agreed that Assad -- who is showing no sign of backing down, two-and-a-half years into a conflict which has killed more than 120,000 people -- should have no role in any future government. Their affirmation nevertheless failed to convince the rebels to commit to Geneva. "The situation is pretty difficult for the opposition," a western diplomat told AFP. "Assad's army is taking rebel positions back, civilians are suffering in some besieged cities and some of the most active rebel groups are disregarding the Coalition authority..." With no firm date for Geneva 2, the opposition could simply put off coming to an agreement on whether to attend, the diplomat said, adding that in Istanbul he expected "difficult and rough talks but no definitive decision".