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Syrian opposition groups united in demanding Assad’s departure

04 July 2012 04:16 (UTC +04:00)

Baku-APA. Syrian opposition groups meeting here for talks over their country’s transition sounded a united call Tuesday demanding President Bashar al-Assad step down, APA reports quoting Xinhua.

After a two-day conference sponsored by the Arab League which ended shortly after midnight, the opposition parties reached agreement upon a "national pledge" document and a transition road map.

The more than 200 opposition figures insisted that a political solution to the 16-month-old crisis should start with the fall of the al-Assad government.

They also called for the trial of those involved in killing civilians, an immediate end to violence, the release of detainees and the withdrawal of troops from urban areas.

Participants had squabbled on the wording of the two documents, which they expected to serve as a blueprint of the future state and guide the country through a transitional period.

Major opposition groups including the Turkey-based Syrian National Council and the domestic Syrian National Coordination Committee for Democratic Change attended the meeting.

On Saturday, an international action group agreed in Geneva on the necessity of a transitional arrangement to end the conflict in the Middle East country, but did not stipulate the ouster of al-Assad.