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Update: Syrian oppositions call for departure of Asaad, Iran disapproves

Xinhua, December 11, 2015 Adjust font size:

The Syrian oppositions wrapped up their two-day meetings in the Saudi capital of Riyadh, and reiterated that the current Syrian President Bashar al-Asaad should not be a part of the war-torn country's future, Saudi Press Agency reported.

The oppositions have long been demanding the departure of President Assad, while countries like Russia and Iran believe that the future of Syria should include all factions of the country.

In a joint statement issued after the meeting, some 100 representatives of the Syrian opposition groups agreed that all segment of the Syrian society need to be represented in the future political system.

The participants also agreed that the Syrian crisis has to be settled via political solutions, and vowed to rebuild security and military authorities.

They rejected the presence of all foreign fighters and armed groups and demanded their immediate departure.

Russia has been launching its own strikes against Syrian terrorists at the request of Assad since late September, and has repeatedly denied allegations that its attacks were aimed at Syrian opposition or civilian targets.

In Tehran, Iran's Deputy Foreign Minister for Arab and African Affairs Hossein Amir-Abdollahian said that his country does not approve the oppositions' meeting in Riyadh.

Some groups with links to Daesh (Islamic State in Arabic) were in the meeting, and the terrorists will never be allowed to decide the future of Syria, he was quoted by Iranian Students' news agency (ISNA) as saying.

The United Nations, in consultation with other countries, is responsible for identifying opposition groups or terrorists in Syria, Amir-Abdollahian said. Endit