Italian-Swedish diplomat Staffan de Mistura, who has served previously in Afghanistan and Iraq, is to become the new UN envoy to Syria, diplomats said Wednesday.
He is to replace Lakhdar Brahimi who resigned at the end of May after two rounds of peace talks yielded no concrete results and Syrian President Bashar al-Assad was re-elected in June.
His nomination was been confirmed to members of the UN Security Council but has not yet been announced officially by the United Nations.
One diplomat said de Mistura would represent the United Nations and "have an Arab deputy."
OPPOSITION ELECTS NEW LEADER
Meanwhile, the main exiled Syrian opposition group yesterday elected Saudi-based businessman Hadi el-Bahra as its new president in a bid to end internal divisions and breathe fresh life into its flagging struggle to oust Assad.
The Syrian National Coalition, the main exiled opposition group seeking the overthrow of Assad, will be hoping el-Bahra enjoys greater success than his predecessor Ahmad Jarba in keeping up the pressure on the regime.
More than 162,000 people have been killed since Syria's conflict erupted in March 2011.
He is to replace Lakhdar Brahimi who resigned at the end of May after two rounds of peace talks yielded no concrete results and Syrian President Bashar al-Assad was re-elected in June.
His nomination was been confirmed to members of the UN Security Council but has not yet been announced officially by the United Nations.
One diplomat said de Mistura would represent the United Nations and "have an Arab deputy."
OPPOSITION ELECTS NEW LEADER
Meanwhile, the main exiled Syrian opposition group yesterday elected Saudi-based businessman Hadi el-Bahra as its new president in a bid to end internal divisions and breathe fresh life into its flagging struggle to oust Assad.
The Syrian National Coalition, the main exiled opposition group seeking the overthrow of Assad, will be hoping el-Bahra enjoys greater success than his predecessor Ahmad Jarba in keeping up the pressure on the regime.
More than 162,000 people have been killed since Syria's conflict erupted in March 2011.
