UN briefing on Syrian peace talks

(21 Feb 2017) A top adviser to the United Nations (UN) envoy for Syria said on Tuesday that their main guidance for the first intra-Syrian peace talks in 10 months will be a Security Council resolution that calls for political transition. UN envoy Staffan de Mistura's chief of staff Michael Contet told reporters in Geneva that the envoy is "looking forward to these discussions" ahead of Thursday's talks between government and opposition delegations, the fourth round of discussions since early last year. The last UN-mediated talks were suspended in April amid renewed fighting. Government forces have since recaptured areas around the country including rebel-held parts of the northern city of Aleppo - President Bashar Assad's biggest victory since the conflict began in March 2011. According to several estimates, Syria's war has killed some 400,000 people, displaced millions and sent more than four million refugees to neighbouring countries. Find out more about AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/HowWeWork Twitter:   / ap_archive   Facebook:   / aparchives   ​​ Instagram:   / apnews   You can license this story through AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/metadata/you...