Damascus: Syria’s rebels have been forced to abandon efforts to hold territory in major cities and towns after a series of devastating battlefield defeats, senior opposition commanders have conceded for the first time, media reported on Monday.
According to reports reeling after the loss of key opposition strongholds in the cities of Homs, Deraa and Idlib to government troops, the rebels have been left with no alternative but to recalibrate their strategy by waging a fragmented guerilla offensive.
The first acknowledgment of the extent of the setbacks opposition fighters have experienced over the past six weeks came as Kofi Annan, the UN and Arab League special envoy, announced that the Syrian government had promised to begin implementing his peace plan next Tuesday.
Appealing for Western and Arab patience, Mr Annan told the United Nations Security Council that, although he had made no progress yet in halting the bloodshed in violence, a breakthrough could be imminent.
President Bashar al-Assad, he reported, had agreed to abide by a timetable to begin the withdrawal of government troops and tanks from population centres on April 10th, with a full ceasefire following 48 hours later.
But many in Syria’s opposition, as well as in the West, have openly questioned Mr Assad’s sincerity, particularly after saying last week that he expected the rebels to take the first step by stopping fighting and disarming – a demand that runs counter to the Annan plan.
It is to be mentioned here that US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said that the US was losing its patience as Syria fails to implement the peace plan backed by UN envoy Kofi Annan.
In the meanwhile, according to UN estimates over 8000 civilians fall prey to the deadly bombardment and killings by Syrian government led by Bashar-al-Assad regime.
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