Us, russia fail to clinch deal on syria peace plan
GENEVA: The United States and Russia failed on Friday to reach a breakthrough deal on military cooperation and a nationwide cessation of hostilities in Syria, saying they still have issues to resolve before an agreement could be announced. US Secretary of State John Kerry and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, addressing a joint news conference after more than nine hours of off-and-on talks in Geneva, said teams from both sides would try to finalise details in coming days in the Swiss city. Kerry said that the talks with Lavrov had “achieved clarity on the path forward” but together they offered few details on how they planned to renew a February cessation of hostilities and improve humanitarian assistance. “We don’t want to have a deal for the sake of the deal,” Kerry said. “We want to have something done that is effective and that works for the people of Syria, that makes the region more stable and secure, and that brings us to the table here in Geneva to find a political solution.” The talks have been complicated since initial meetings in July by new government attacks on opposition groups, and a significant offensive in the southern part of the divided city of Aleppo led by opposition fighters intermingled with the Nusra Front, an AlQaeda affiliate also seeking to topple Russian-backed President Bashar al-Assad. In the days ahead the technical teams, which include US and Russian military and intelligence experts, will try to figure out ways to separate the opposition groups, backed by the United States and Gulf Arab countries, from the jihadis. It was unclear after Friday’s meetings whether outstanding issues could all be resolved between Moscow and Washington, which back opposing parties in the Syrian conflict. The United States has insisted that the Syrian air force, which has dropped barrel bombs and chlorine on residential areas, be grounded but Lavrov said on Friday that was not the goal.
Britain has locked up the extremist Anjem Choudary of the nowbanned Al-Muhajiroun and the most prominent hate preacher in UK, finally. The establishment is cringing about the ignominy of why it took so long to arrest and sentence him. Choudary was found to have links to 14 UK terrorist plots and encouraging support for the ISIS.
He will begin his sentence of ten years in Belmarsh prison, where radicalisation opportunities are rife, as confirmed by Ian Acheson’s review published this week on “Islamic Extremism in Prisons”. The report examined how the violent and non-violent elements of extremism can be imposed on vulnerable offenders. British prisons have a long history and threatening future of coping with terrorists and religious extremists. The aftermath of 9/11 saw an increase in extremism motivated by Islamist ideology.