Syria peace talks off to rocky start
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By Maya Gebeily and Gabrielle Tétrault-Farber (AFP) 8 hours ago in World
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Syrian rebels began peace talks with the war-torn country's government Monday in Kazakhstan's capital Astana, but refused to negotiate face-to-face in the first session.
The talks had been billed as the first time armed rebel groups were due to negotiate with President Bashar al-Assad's regime since the conflict erupted in 2011 and come a month after Syrian forces delivered the rebels a crushing blow by retaking full control of Aleppo.
But rebel spokesman Yehya al-Aridi told AFP the opposition backed out of the first round of direct talks because of the regime's continued bombardment and attacks on a flashpoint area near Damascus.
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http://www.digitaljournal.com/news/world/syria-rebels-arrive-in-astana-for-talks-with-regime/article/484223#ixzz4WaNjfJgs
