Syrian peace talks to resume in Geneva on Monday: UN

By Peter Kenny

GENEVA (AA) - A fourth session of the constitutional committee will begin on Monday in Geneva to hammer out the roots of the basic laws for a peaceful Syria, the Office of the UN Special Envoy for Syria said Thursday.

"As the Deputy Special Envoy informed the Security Council, plans are being finalized for the fourth session of the Constitutional Committee's small body, which will convene from 30 November to 4 December," Jennifer Fenton, spokesperson for the office, told Anadolu Agency.

The talks, to be facilitated by UN Special Envoy for Syria Geir Pedersen, will continue until Friday next week, as the last round in Geneva ended on Aug. 29.

UN Deputy Special Envoy for Syria Khawla Matar told the UN Security Council in New York the preceding day that a further session would be held in Geneva on Jan. 5 after next week's session.

He said that the talks in Geneva were made possible due to the agreement of the two Syrian co-chairs from both sides and the mandate of the Constitutional Committee’s small Body.

Members of what is known as the "small group" responsible for the drafting of a new constitution for the war-torn country had met in August.

The group consists of 15 members from the regime, non-governmental organizations, and the Syrian opposition.

Following the talks in August, Pedersen had said the talks sought to build trust between the sides after nearly 10 years of war.

"I was extremely pleased to hear the two co-chairs saying very clearly that the thought also there were quite a few areas of commonalities.

"And what I'm looking forward to is hopefully then when we meet again, that we will be able to build on those commonalities and bring the process further forward," Pedersen had said.

Syria has been embroiled in a vicious civil war since early 2011, when the Bashar al-Assad regime cracked down on pro-democracy protests with unexpected ferocity.

Since then, over 5 million civilians have become homeless.