Saudi Arabia's permanent representative to the Arab League Ahmed bin Abdul-Aziz Kattan said on Wednesday that the war in Syria could lead to the country's eventual division.
"The Syrian regime, unfortunately, does not believe in peaceful solutions. I would like to end with this: I want you to imagine the number of players involved in Syria; the United States, Russia, Turkey, Iran, and extremist militias. How can you imagine a solution in the midst of this war? I believe it will eventually lead to the division of Syria," he said.
Kattan spoke following a regular meeting of Arab foreign ministers in Cairo where they discussed Iranian intervention in Arab affairs, the status of Jerusalem, as well as the ongoing war in Syria.
Arab League Secretary General Ahmed Aboul Gheit also stressed that a cease-fire in eastern Ghouta, where Syrian government forces are battling rebel groups, must be upheld, and civilians must be protected.
Meanwhile, a pro-Damascus military commander said on Thursday that the Syrian army has effectively sliced rebel-held eastern Ghouta in two as forces advancing from the east were poised to link up with troops at the enclave's western edge.
A rebel official denied the commander's claim.
The remaining sliver of territory linking the northern and southern parts of the enclave is just one kilometer wide and is within firing range of government forces. In military terms, that means the territory had been bisected, the commander said.
The commander, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to talk to the media, confirmed a report by the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, which said late on Wednesday the enclave had effectively been sliced in two.
