Syria peace talks get underway in Kazakhstan

Peace talks aimed at ending the Syria conflict through a gathering between the Syrian government and rebel groups began on Jan. 23 in the Kazakh capital of Astana. 

Representatives from the two sides sat at the same table as Kazakh Foreign Minister Kairat Abdrakhmanov delivered an opening speech, an AFP correspondent saw.  

Rebel spokesman Yehya al-Aridi told AFP earlier on Jan. 23 that the opposition was backing out of the first direct talks because of the government's continued bombardment and attacks on a flashpoint area near Damascus.

"The first negotiation session will not be face-to-face because the government hasn't committed until now to what it signed in the Dec. 30 [2016] agreement," al-Aridi told AFP, referring to a fragile cease-fire deal brokered by Turkey and Russia.  

Fourteen representatives of armed opposition groups gathered at the Rixos Hotel in Astana for indirect negotiations with delegates representing the Syrian government, which is headed by Syrian U.N. ambassador Bashar al-Jaafari. 

Mohamed Alloush of Jaish al-Islam (Army of Islam) heads the Syrian opposition's delegation at the talks.
The discussions, which will focus on extending the cease-fire, have been brokered by Turkey, which backs the opposition, and Russia and Iran, who support Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's government. 

They will discuss violations of the cease-fire as well as improving security within Syria in a bid to pave the way for a political solution to the six-year conflict, though no political discussion is expected in Astana. 

"We will not enter into any political discussions and everything revolves over abiding by the cease-fire and the humanitarian dimension of easing the suffering of Syrians under...