Feature: Syrians eager to see tangible results in Geneva talks

Syrians have experienced six years of war and have suffered lots of woes and calamities and they pin high hopes on the intra-Syrian talks in Geneva and eager to see tangible results.

As a fourth round of Geneva intra-Syrian talks is taking place, Syrians in the capital Damascus were all but optimistic. They strongly urged the Syrian delegations of the government and opposition to put the interests of Syrians before any political calculations or affiliations.

They said it's enough of war, enough of the killing, and enough of the torn apart social fabric and falling economy.

"It has been six years, I reached to the point that I can't watch the delegations staying in the best cities of the world, sitting on a fantasy tables, and discussing our miserable fate and that of this country," Samer Ahmad, an accountant, told Xinhua.

Samer reflected the opinion of the vast majorities in the Syrian streets, who have become fed up with the lack of progress in each round of talks in Geneva.

Muhammad Mukhtar, a university student, urged the government and the opposition in Geneva to try to reach to a common ground to figure out a solution to the long-standing conflict, which left hundreds of people killed, half of the country's population displaced, and last but not least the huge destruction that has befallen Syria.

"I have spent much of my youth in this crisis, knowing nothing but to go to the university and return home. There are no activities, no trips, only school and home and all of this is depressing when you realize that once graduated, you will find no jobs," he said.

In Geneva, the opposition and government delegations sat face to face for the first time in three years, during the welcoming session headed by UN Special Envoy to Syria Staffan de Mistura on Thursday.

This round of talk will focus on UN Security Council resolution 2254 which calls for a new constitution, UN-supervised elections and transparent and accountable governance.

"I ask you to work together. I know it's not going to be easy to end this horrible conflict and lay the foundation for a country at peace with itself, sovereign and unified," Mistura told the delegates.

De Mistura told the government and opposition representatives that they had a joint responsibility to end a conflict.

"The Syrian people desperately all want an end to this conflict and you all know it," he said.

People in Damascus are following the news in Geneva, trying to get a sense of what this round would produce.

Ammar Kheir, a political science student, told Xinhua that the first day of the talks in Geneva seemed "cold."

"I haven't sensed any enthusiasm in the faces of the delegations," Kheir said.

He cited the remarks of Mistura when he said he didn't expect the new round of talks to make a breakthrough.

Meanwhile, a Syrian journalist covering the Geneva talks told Xinhua that ambiguity overshadows the first two days of the talks, in terms of the lack of information emerging about the possible path of the negotiations.

He said the media teams in Geneva are also sharing little to no optimism about this round of talks.

"We are pretty sure that no breakthrough will be made during this meeting, but still, we would like see at lease a prelude to the hoped for breakthrough," the journalist said, asked not to be named.

He said that Mistura handed a paper to the Syrian delegation on Friday, which includes three items, the shape of the future rule in Syria, the constitution and elections.

The head of the Syrian government delegation, Bashar al-Jafaari, said his delegation will study the paper and will respond to it in the next session. Endit