With less than two weeks to go until the United Nations-sponsored peace talks aimed at ending the Syrian Civil War, the alliance of Gulf States and Western Power opposed to President bash al-Assad are urging rebel groups to take a place at the negotiating table.

The main political opposition body in exile is the Syrian National Coalition (SNC).  Internal bickering plagues that alliance.  But, US Secretary of State John Kerry is urging the different factions to get over it, saying attendance is “a test of credibility”.

The conference in Geneva, Switzerland is scheduled to begin on 22 January, for implementing an agreement reached 18 months ago by a larger group of outside countries – including Russia, one of Assad’s main backers.  It calls for all sides to negotiate the transition to an interim government.

Meanwhile, UN humanitarian affairs chief Baroness Valerie Amos is expressing deep concern for Syrian communities isolated by months of fighting between government and rebel forces, and infighting between rebel groups. 

“The sick and wounded have not been able to leave, we’ve not been able to get food in.  There are reports of people on the brink of starvation including in the Yarmouk Palestinian refugee camp close to the centre of Damascus,” said Amos.

Intentionally starving a community is a war crime.

The civil war within a civil war has claimed hundreds of lives in recent days.  The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights says 100 civilians and nearly 600 rebels from opposing groups have been killed in Northern Syria. 

But of the 100 civilians, 21 were executed by the al Qaeda-affiliated group ISIS in the children's hospital in Qadi Askar in the northern rebel stronghold of Aleppo, according to the observatory.