UN-AL envoy calls for early ceasefire in Syria

UN-Arab League peace envoy for Syria Lakhdar Brahimi speaks during a news conference after meeting with Lebanon's Prime Minister Najib Mikati (not pictured) at the government palace in Beirut, Oct 17, 2012. [Photo/Agencies]

UNITED NATIONS - The UN-Arab League (AL) joint special representative for Syria, Lakhdar Brahimi, on Wednesday reiterated UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon's ceasefire appeal by restating that "all countries that provide arms to various parties in Syria" need to stop doing so, UN spokesman Martin Nesirky said.  

Brahimi, who replaced Kofi Annan in September to engage in good offices on Syria on behalf of the United Nations and Arab League, made the statement as he was meeting with Lebanese leaders in the capital Beirut, Nesirky said at a daily news briefing.

The Syrian government announced on Tuesday that it is interested in exploring a ceasefire in the 19-month conflict as proposed by Brahimi, but stipulated the commitment of the other party of the conflict.

The head of the opposition National Syrian Council, Abdul-Baset Seda, also welcomed the truce.

Despite the apparent leniency, Brahimi's mission is still facing serious obstacles due to the divergence of opinions of main players in the Syrian crisis.

Brahimi, the former Algerian foreign minister, is discussing his ceasefire proposal with regional countries to hammer out a concrete plan before speaking to Syria, because "countries in the region must realize that this crisis cannot remain within Syria's borders forever", Nesirky said.

When meeting with Lebanese President Michel Suleiman, Prime Minister Najib Miqati in Beirut on Wednesday, Brahimi, who is on his second Middle East tour to mediate a ceasefire in the Syrian crisis, warned that the unrest in Syria would inevitably spread to the region.

Nesirky said, in the meeting, "they had discussed the secretary-general's appeal for a ceasefire that would be initiated by the government" and "to which opposition would respond positively."

Brahimi has proposed a ceasefire between the Syrian rebels and government forces during the Eid al-Adha holiday, which begins on Oct 26 and lasts four days, in a hope that it will lead to a political process in the Middle East country, which has been plunged into a political crisis since March 2011.