Uncertainty remains on eve of Syria talks in Geneva
Salem al-Muslat, the spokesperson to the HNC, told Al Jazeera on Thursday that the opposition is serious about joining the talks, but on certain conditions.
"We want the talks to start, but the main obstacle is those who continue bombing our civilians and starve them," Muslat said from Riyadh.
However, the office of UN special envoy Staffan de Mistura issued a video message that he had sent to the Syrian people, in which he said the talks were expected to happen "in the next few days".
Earlier in Geneva, sources told Al Jazeera that the talks were likely to be delayed.
"Opposition sources are telling me they've been told by diplomats and UN officials that it's highly unlikely that the talks will be able to take place on Friday," Al Jazeera's James Bays reported.
The HNC said it was going to announce on Thursday whether to attend the talks or not, but our correspondent said that "the logistics of getting them here, even if they say yes, means a Friday start is almost impossible".
He added that some opposition groups other than the HNC, including women's groups and civil society groups, have not yet received their visas to travel to Switzerland.
"My understanding is that a meeting is taking place between the UN Special Envoy Staffan de Mistura, the US and Russian ambassadors here in Geneva, afther which they will probably make a decision on whether to delay the talks or not," Bays said.
The opposition's requests to the UN include a clarification on how exactly the talks are to be conducted and an end to Russian air strikes of opposition forces.
The Syrian government delegation, lead by Foreign Minister Walid al-Muallem, has already said it will attend.
The Syrian conflict has killed at least 250,000 people, according to the UN, and more than half of Syria's pre-war population of 22.4 million has been internally displaced or have fled abroad.
Al Jazeera
