The New York Times released a recording on Friday, in which US secretary of state John Kerry sounds exasperated that his diplomatic efforts to end Syria&#39;s civil war were not supported by the US military.&nbsp;

In the leaked audio recording, Kerry could be heard saying &quot;I think you&#39;re looking at three people, four people in the administration who have all argued for use of force, and I lost the argument.&quot; The conversation was recorded in New York where Kerry was talking to a group of Syrian civilians, on&nbsp;the sidelines of UNGA.&nbsp;

&quot;I&#39;ve argued for the use of force ... but things evolved into a different process.&quot;

&quot;Look, I get it, a lot of us wish there was an enforcement mechanism right now. A lot of us have been fighting for one, but we don&#39;t have one right now and that&#39;s set,&quot; he warned.

&quot;We&#39;re trying to pursue the diplomacy, and I understand it&#39;s frustrating. You have nobody more frustrated than we are,&quot; he told the Syrians.&nbsp;

State department spokesman John Kirby did not deny that the audio clip was authentic, &quot;While we will decline to comment on a private conversation, Secretary Kerry was grateful for the chance to meet with this group of Syrians, to hear their concerns first hand and to express our continued focus on ending this civil war.&quot;

According to AFP, Kerry has been pushing US President Barack Obama to take a more robust path in Syria to force President Bashar al-Assad out.&nbsp;

In August 2013, after Assad had been accused of firing chemical weapons at civilians, Kerry gave a ferocious speech that was seen as prefiguring a retaliatory US military strike -- only for Obama to back down only hours later.

He also referred to the incident in the recording&nbsp;but blamed the US Congress for not voting to authorise military action against Assad.&nbsp;

During the meeting, the Syrians had expressed frustration that the US was only focused on fighting the Islamic State group and have overlooked Assad and his forces.

(WION with inputs from AFP) 
&nbsp;

US secretary of state Kerry pushed for use of military action to end the Syrian war in the leaked audio interaction with a group of Syrians

The New York Times released a recording on Friday, in which US secretary of state John Kerry sounds exasperated that his diplomatic efforts to end Syria's civil war were not supported by the US military. In the leaked audio recording, Kerry could be heard saying "I think you're looking at three people, four people in the administration who have all argued for use of force, and I lost the argument." The conversation was recorded in New York where Kerry was talking to a group of Syrian civilians, on the sidelines of UNGA. "I've argued for the use of force ... but things evolved into a different process." "Look, I get it, a lot of us wish there was an enforcement mechanism right now. A lot of us have been fighting for one, but we don't have one right now and that's set," he warned. "We're trying to pursue the diplomacy, and I understand it's frustrating. You have nobody more frustrated than we are," he told the Syrians. State department spokesman John Kirby did not deny that the audio clip was authentic, "While we will decline to comment on a private conversation, Secretary Kerry was grateful for the chance to meet with this group of Syrians, to hear their concerns first hand and to express our continued focus on ending this civil war." According to AFP, Kerry has been pushing US President Barack Obama to take a more robust path in Syria to force President Bashar al-Assad out. In August 2013, after Assad had been accused of firing chemical weapons at civilians, Kerry gave a ferocious speech that was seen as prefiguring a retaliatory US military strike -- only for Obama to back down only hours later. He also referred to the incident in the recording but blamed the US Congress for not voting to authorise military action against Assad. During the meeting, the Syrians had expressed frustration that the US was only focused on fighting the Islamic State group and have overlooked Assad and his forces. (WION with inputs from AFP)

Kerry laments lack of Syria options in leaked audio

&nbsp;The United States called on Russia and the Syrian government on Monday to refrain from offensive operations in Syria, as fighting continued on the day US&nbsp;Secretary of State John Kerry hoped a political transition could begin.

Asked if he was dismayed August&nbsp;1 had come without a political transition to help end Syria&#39;s five-year civil war, Kerry said the target date was set earlier this year when there were hopes political talks could take hold amid a reduction in violence.

However, a &quot;cessation of hostilities&quot; that began in February has now all but unravelled. In the latest incident, a Russian military helicopter was shot down in Syria&#39;s rebel-held Idlib province, killing all five people on board.

&quot;It is critical, obviously, that Russia restrain both itself and the Assad regime from conducting offensive operations, just as it is our responsibility to get the opposition to refrain from engaging in those operations,&quot; Kerry told reporters.

&quot;These are important days to determine whether or not Russia and the Assad regime are going to live up to&quot; the effort to end the violence and to resume peace talks, Kerry said. &quot;The evidence thus far is very, very troubling to everybody.&quot;

US&nbsp;officials have suggested that a Russian and Syrian &quot;humanitarian operation&quot; for the besieged city of Aleppo is a ruse to evacuate civilians so that their forces can go after militants in the city who oppose Assad&#39;s rule. 
 
(Reuters)

In the latest incident, a Russian military helicopter was shot down in Syria's rebel-held Idlib province, killing all five people on board

The United States called on Russia and the Syrian government on Monday to refrain from offensive operations in Syria, as fighting continued on the day US Secretary of State John Kerry hoped a political transition could begin. Asked if he was dismayed August 1 had come without a political transition to help end Syria's five-year civil war, Kerry said the target date was set earlier this year when there were hopes political talks could take hold amid a reduction in violence. However, a "cessation of hostilities" that began in February has now all but unravelled. In the latest incident, a Russian military helicopter was shot down in Syria's rebel-held Idlib province, killing all five people on board. "It is critical, obviously, that Russia restrain both itself and the Assad regime from conducting offensive operations, just as it is our responsibility to get the opposition to refrain from engaging in those operations," Kerry told reporters. "These are important days to determine whether or not Russia and the Assad regime are going to live up to" the effort to end the violence and to resume peace talks, Kerry said. "The evidence thus far is very, very troubling to everybody." US officials have suggested that a Russian and Syrian "humanitarian operation" for the besieged city of Aleppo is a ruse to evacuate civilians so that their forces can go after militants in the city who oppose Assad's rule. (Reuters)

Russia must restrain itself, Assad from offensive Syria strikes: John Kerry

The Obama administration is considering a plan to coordinate air strikes on Nusra Front and Islamic State militants in Syria if Syria&#39;s government stops bombing &#39;moderate&#39; rebels, US officials said on Thursday. 
 
The US backs the &#39;moderate&#39; rebels, who are under pressure from Islamic State and government forces, but the plan depends in part on whether Russia is willing to press Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, its ally, to stop bombing them. Many US officials and outside experts doubt Moscow is willing to do that. 
 
It would also require moderate opposition forces to disentangle themselves from Nusra and move into identifiable areas where they would be vulnerable to government and Russian air attacks. 
 
Although Russia says it has targeted Islamic State, most of its strikes have been on the US-backed moderate rebels, who distrust the Assad government which has caused most of the ceasefire violation, as claimed by the moderate rebels and Washington. 
 
&quot;If the moderates separate themselves from Nusra, the Russians and Assad will immediately target them,&quot; said Chris Harmer, an analyst with the Institute for the Study of War. &quot;The idea that the moderate rebels will separate themselves from Nusra is just not going to happen. It (the administration plan) is a Hail Mary pass that is dead on arrival.&quot; 
 
&quot;It&rsquo;s staggering to me that anybody, even during the fifth year of this civil war, thought this would be a good idea,&quot; said Harmer. 
 
The Washington Post, which first reported the plan, said the Obama administration has submitted a written proposal to Moscow, but two US officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, said that while the plan is under discussion within the administration, no decisions have been made. 
 
A &#39;Hail Mary&#39;pass? 
 
That Washington is even considering such a plan, however, reflects the unravelling of a February 27 cessation of hostilities agreement that was supposed to bring some calm to a country riven by five years of civil war and promote a political settlement, as well as the weakness of the US-backed moderate opposition forces. 
 
In one sign of their predicament, US-backed Syrian rebels on Wednesday were pushed back from Al-Bukamal, an Islamic State-held town on the Iraq border, suffering casualties and seeing some of their fighters and arms captured, a rebel source said. 
 
Finally, targeting the Nusra Front could end up boosting the popularity of the al Qaeda affiliate, which is widely hailed by anti-government Syrians as the most effective fighting force seeking to oust Assad. 
 
Prospects for a political deal to end the conflict appear dim, not least because there is no agreement on the future of Assad, whom the US wants to step down, but whom Russia has supported with its military intervention since last September. 
 
UN Syria envoy Staffan De Mistura is in Washington this week to meet senior US officials to discuss efforts to reduce attacks on civilians and the provision of humanitarian aid as he &quot;continues to work to advance a political transition,&quot; National security council spokesman Carl Woog said on Thursday.&nbsp; 
 
(Reuters)

The rebels backed by the US is under fire from the Islamic State and the government forces which has support from Moscow

The Obama administration is considering a plan to coordinate air strikes on Nusra Front and Islamic State militants in Syria if Syria's government stops bombing 'moderate' rebels, US officials said on Thursday. The US backs the 'moderate' rebels, who are under pressure from Islamic State and government forces, but the plan depends in part on whether Russia is willing to press Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, its ally, to stop bombing them. Many US officials and outside experts doubt Moscow is willing to do that. It would also require moderate opposition forces to disentangle themselves from Nusra and move into identifiable areas where they would be vulnerable to government and Russian air attacks. Although Russia says it has targeted Islamic State, most of its strikes have been on the US-backed moderate rebels, who distrust the Assad government which has caused most of the ceasefire violation, as claimed by the moderate rebels and Washington. "If the moderates separate themselves from Nusra, the Russians and Assad will immediately target them," said Chris Harmer, an analyst with the Institute for the Study of War. "The idea that the moderate rebels will separate themselves from Nusra is just not going to happen. It (the administration plan) is a Hail Mary pass that is dead on arrival." "It’s staggering to me that anybody, even during the fifth year of this civil war, thought this would be a good idea," said Harmer. The Washington Post, which first reported the plan, said the Obama administration has submitted a written proposal to Moscow, but two US officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, said that while the plan is under discussion within the administration, no decisions have been made. A 'Hail Mary'pass? That Washington is even considering such a plan, however, reflects the unravelling of a February 27 cessation of hostilities agreement that was supposed to bring some calm to a country riven by five years of civil war and promote a political settlement, as well as the weakness of the US-backed moderate opposition forces. In one sign of their predicament, US-backed Syrian rebels on Wednesday were pushed back from Al-Bukamal, an Islamic State-held town on the Iraq border, suffering casualties and seeing some of their fighters and arms captured, a rebel source said. Finally, targeting the Nusra Front could end up boosting the popularity of the al Qaeda affiliate, which is widely hailed by anti-government Syrians as the most effective fighting force seeking to oust Assad. Prospects for a political deal to end the conflict appear dim, not least because there is no agreement on the future of Assad, whom the US wants to step down, but whom Russia has supported with its military intervention since last September. UN Syria envoy Staffan De Mistura is in Washington this week to meet senior US officials to discuss efforts to reduce attacks on civilians and the provision of humanitarian aid as he "continues to work to advance a political transition," National security council spokesman Carl Woog said on Thursday. (Reuters)

US to bomb Nusra and IS if Assad halts strikes on Washington-backed rebels

<div lang="EN-US" paraeid="{fc0c6d87-184c-45ce-bacb-2741137430da}{15}" paraid="2055424481" >Syrian President Bashar al-Assad on Wednesday named electricity minister Imad Khamis as the new prime minister of the war-ravaged country.&nbsp; 
 
Assad tasked Khamis with forming a new government, the official news agency SANA reported.&nbsp; 
He is to submit his proposal for new ministerial appointments in the coming days.&nbsp; 
 
The fifty-four-year-old engineer replaces Wael al-Halqi who had held the post since August 2012.&nbsp; 
 
The changes come two months after Assad&#39;s Baath party and its allies won a majority of seats in parliamentary elections dismissed internationally as a sham.&nbsp; 
 
Khamis had served as Syria&#39;s minister of electricity since 2011 and is an electrical engineer by trade.&nbsp; 
 
Since March 2012, he has been sanctioned by the European Union, which accuses him of sharing &quot;responsibility for the regime&#39;s violent repression against the civilian population.&quot;&nbsp; 
 
Syria&#39;s conflict began in 2011 with widespread protests demanding reform but has since escalated into a bloody civil war that has left 280,000 dead.&nbsp; 
 
According to the government, production of electricity has more than halved since the beginning of the crisis.&nbsp; 
&nbsp; 
(AFP)&nbsp;</div>

Electricity minister Imad Khamis has been sanctioned by EU since March 2012 for sharing responsibility for violent repression of civilians

Syrian President Bashar al-Assad on Wednesday named electricity minister Imad Khamis as the new prime minister of the war-ravaged country. Assad tasked Khamis with forming a new government, the official news agency SANA reported. He is to submit his proposal for new ministerial appointments in the coming days. The fifty-four-year-old engineer replaces Wael al-Halqi who had held the post since August 2012. The changes come two months after Assad's Baath party and its allies won a majority of seats in parliamentary elections dismissed internationally as a sham. Khamis had served as Syria's minister of electricity since 2011 and is an electrical engineer by trade. Since March 2012, he has been sanctioned by the European Union, which accuses him of sharing "responsibility for the regime's violent repression against the civilian population." Syria's conflict began in 2011 with widespread protests demanding reform but has since escalated into a bloody civil war that has left 280,000 dead. According to the government, production of electricity has more than halved since the beginning of the crisis. (AFP)

Syrian President Bashar al-Assad names new PM for Syria

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