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UN mediator De Mistura begins two-day visit to Syria

World News

28-02-2015 | 12:38

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UN mediator De Mistura begins two-day visit to Syria

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United Nations mediator, Staffan De Mistura, arrived in the Syrian capital of Damascus on Saturday (February 28) as he started a two-day visit to the country.

De Mistura was expected to meet with Syrian Foreign Walid al-Mouallem on Saturday evening.

The Italian-Swedish diplomat who has been working since October on his plan to negotiate "local freezes" that would start with the northern city of Aleppo, told the Security Council that he had a long meeting with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad during a recent visit to the country.

Di Mistura wants to discuss his proposal for the Syrian government to suspend its bombardment of Aleppo for six weeks.

Aleppo is at the forefront of clashes between pro-government forces and a range of insurgents, including Islamist brigades, al Qaeda's hardline Syria wing Nusra Front and Western-backed units.

The Syrian army, backed by allied armed groups, has captured several villages near Aleppo in battles aimed at encircling the northern city and cutting off insurgent supply lines, a monitoring group said on Tuesday (February 24).

De Mistura's visit comes at a sensitive time as the Syrian government expelled three U.N. aid workers on Friday (February 27), in a move that will harm attempts to deliver relief around the war-torn country, U.N. agencies said.

Damascus denies it blocks aid. Syrian officials could not immediately be reached to comment on the cases.

Aid workers in Syria say Damascus has in the past used threats of expulsion as a way of muting criticism and discouraging attempts to break sieges.

REUTERS

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