Inside sources at the Syrian opposition’s High Negotiations Committee (HNC) said that it has started talks to rearrange its internal affairs, especially in terms of appointing a new head of the negotiating delegation and expanding its circle of representatives, to facilitate making an appropriate decision regarding this matter at its next meeting that is supposed to take place in approximately ten days’ time.

After the Syrian opposition’s chief negotiator Mohammed Alloush submitted his resignation, there is now a tendency to abolish the position that he previously held and appoint a leader of the delegation. It is almost settled that the leader will not be a military one and it is not necessary for the individual to be a member of the HNC.

The sources also revealed that a decision has been made to appoint a substitute for the head of the negotiating delegation Asaad Al-Zoubi which will prompt him to hand in his resignation. The sources noted that while his performance is commendable, he has been criticised for his undiplomatic and “military personality” that often reflects negatively on the body’s relations with international authorities.

After the sources highlighted the existence of a trend to expand the circle of representatives in the negotiating team to include new parties from “the Cairo Platform” and “the Moscow platform”, they said that names tipped to take over the delegation’s leadership alternate between Basma Qadamani and Jihad Al-Maqdisi among others.

However, the sources stressed that the selection is subject to several considerations, especially the distribution of the four components of the committee; the National Coalition, the National Coordination Body, military factions and independent individuals.