Details of the latest Turkish offer to Damascus

Sources from the Syrian opposition present in Türkiye spoke about a political negotiation that is taking place since Saturday evening, with Iraq playing a major role in the communications.

Ankara is waiting for Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi to assess the readiness of Syrian President Bashar al Assad to enter into negotiations towards a comprehensive political settlement.

The sources didn’t rule out the existence of implicit support from several parties to launch a large-scale military attack.

The sources explained that the armed factions didn’t expect the Syrian army to weaken its resistance, but the acceleration of the operation came as a result of changes in the field situation, especially after the withdrawal of Hezbollah forces and Iranian advisers, which weakened the government’s forces.

Russia on the other hand, didn’t react as expected to protect its interests in the region, which made it easier for the opposition to send large forces to Idlib and Aleppo, and reach the outskirts of Hama.

The decision was taken not to penetrate the city of Hama itself, but rather to control the strategic hills, explaining that the continuation of the advance in Hama depends on political and field developments, but is separate from the operation supported by Türkiye in the Tal Rifaat area controlled by the Kurdish factions.

According to sources, there are disagreements within the opposition forces about the next steps, as the factions of the “Syrian Coalition” and the groups under the banner of the Turkish backed “Syrian National Army” don’t want to leave the field to Hay’at Tahrir al Sham and the factions related to, led by Abu Muhammad al Julani.

They called for distinguishing between the battles of “Deterrence of Aggression” and “Dawn of Freedom,” as the goals and implementation mechanisms differ.

On the other hand, the Arab and regional stance reflects a clear contrast, as Egypt, Jordan and the UAE supported the Syrian government, while Qatar took a neutral stance, and everyone is waiting for Saudi Arabia’s position.

As for Iraq, it adopted the role of mediator, with its interest in closing the border to prevent infiltration from both sides.

In south, Jordanian officials warned the Syrian opposition factions in Dara’a against carrying out any military activity against the Syrian army, stressing that Amman won’t accept any action against the Syrian government.

Regarding the Turkish position, the opposition explained that the attack wouldn’t have begun without Türkiye’s approval, but noted that there was a difference in objectives between Ankara and the Syrian opposition.

Opposition sources confirmed that Türkiye informed Iraqi, Iranian and Russian mediators that Assad bears responsibility because he rejected the initiatives of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who was seeking a settlement and pressuring the opposition to support any agreement with Damascus.

On this regard, Türkiye, through mediators, presented a proposal for a solution with Syria, which includes:

1. Starting direct political negotiations between the Syrian government and the opposition with the aim of achieving political change.
2. Ankara is committed to setting a timetable for the withdrawal of its forces from Syrian territory.
3. Coordinating with the Syrian government on security arrangements in Kurdish areas to ensure that Türkiye’s security isn’t threatened.
4. Re-imposing Syrian state laws in all areas, including those controlled by the opposition, especially laws related to money and education.
5. Opening the city of Aleppo to be a free industrial and trade zone, with Türkiye pledging to rebuild the industrial city and seeking to exempt it from US sanctions.
6. Setting a timetable for a political transition through a new dialogue in Geneva.