Syria urged by Turkey, U.S. to hold talks with opposition after sudden advance

Turkey and Iran, which support opposing sides in Syria’s civil war, said they have agreed to resume diplomatic efforts along with Russia to restore calm.

The recent rapid advance by opposition fighters in Syria shows that Syrian President Bashar Assad must reconcile with his own people and hold talks with the opposition, the Turkish foreign minister said Monday.

At a joint news conference in Ankara with his Iranian counterpart, Hakan Fidan said Turkey and Iran, which support opposing sides in Syria’s civil war, have agreed to resume diplomatic efforts along with Russia to restore calm days after insurgents launched a lightning offensive and captured almost all of the country’s largest city, Aleppo.

Insurgents captured four new towns early Tuesday, opposition activists said, while government forces retook some territory they lost last week.

The capture of the towns is the latest in the push by insurgents led by the salafi jihadi Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, as well as Turkey-backed opposition fighters. Insurgents now are about 10 kilometers (6 miles) from Hama, the country’s fourth-largest city.

The swift advance has been a huge embarrassment for Assad and it comes at a time when his allies — Iran and Russia — are preoccupied with their own conflicts.

The push is among the rebels’ strongest in years and raises the prospect of another violent front reopening in the Middle East when U.S.-backed Israel is fighting Hamas in Gaza and Hezbollah in Lebanon, both Iranian-allied groups.

Fidan, whose country has backed forces opposed to Assad, blamed the recent flare-up of the conflict on the Syrian government’s refusal to enter a dialogue with the opposition that Turkey supports.

“Recent developments show once again that Damascus must reconcile with its own people and the legitimate opposition,” the Turkish minister said. “Turkey is ready to make all the necessary contribution toward this.”