Syria opposition to attend Rome summit

BEIRUT - Agence France-Presse

Sheikh Moaz Al-Khatib, head of the Syrian opposition, listens during the Munich Security Conference on February 1, 2013 in Munich, southern Germany. AFP PHOTO / THOMAS KIENZLE

Syrian National Coalition chief Ahmed Moaz al-Khatib said Monday that the Syrian opposition will attend the Friends of Syria conference in Rome this week, after an earlier decision to boycott the meeting.

In a statement on his Facebook page Khatib said his group will go to Rome for Thursday's meeting after US Secretary of State John Kerry and British Foreign Secretary William Hague "promised specific aid to alleviate the suffering of our people." The Coalition had announced on Saturday its intention to withdraw from the 11-nation meeting in Rome and to cancel planned visits to Washington and Moscow in protest at the "international silence" over "crimes committed against the Syrian people."