New York
(AsiaNews / Agencies) - The Algerian diplomat Lakhdar Brahimi, will succeed
Kofi Annan to the post of UN and Arab League special envoy for the peace
process in Syria. The
news is not confirmed yet, but according to diplomatic sources, the appointment
of Brahimi will be formally announced in the coming days, change over ceremony
with Annan will be held at the end of August. The
former UN secretary-general announced his resignation on August 3 last. He
accused the UN Security Council of deep divisions and emphasized the growing
militarization of the conflict.
Brahimi's
task will be to seek a diplomatic way to end the war in Syria and bring regime
and rebels of the Free Syrian Army to the negotiating table, who staunchly
refuse any dialogue. After
two weeks of siege, Assad's forces have captured the last quarter of Salah
al-Din, one of the strategic points of Aleppo. Today
the FSA rebels confirmed the withdrawal of their forces from the area.
Brahimi,
78, was the special envoy of the UN in several hotspots of the planet and has
served as a mediator in many conflicts. He
was foreign minister during the Algerian civil war (1991 to 1993), represented
the United Nations in Afghanistan from 1997-1999 and from 2001 to 2004, and in
Iraq after the 2003invasion. He
retired in 2005, in 2009 he was offered to lead a group of independent experts
to conduct training programs for UN staff in the world. Brahimi
is part of the "Elders", a group formed by diplomats, politicians and
religious leaders who meet regularly to analyze and try for mediation in
countries and areas affected by conflict. The
group includes former U.S. president Jimmy Carter, Archbishop Desmond Tutu and
Martti Ahtisaari, former Finnish president and Nobel Peace Laureate.