DHAKA: Syria’s opposition National Coalition has rejected an Iranian offer to broker talks with the regime, saying the bid was ‘not serious’ and calling Tehran ‘part of the problem’.

‘The Iranian initiative is not serious and lacks political credibility,’ the key opposition grouping said in a statement on Saturday, reports Al Jazeera.

The comments came after Iranian president Hassan Rouhani said on Thursday that his government was willing to ‘facilitate dialogue’ between the Syrian government and opposition fighters.

‘We must join hands to constructively work toward national dialogue, whether in Syria or Bahrain. We must create an atmosphere where peoples of the region can decide their own fates,’ Rouhani wrote in a column in The Washington Post.

BDST: 1559 HRS, SEPT 21, 2013
RoR/Jck