push - Aljazeera.
This from Syrian Observer, http://www.syrianobserver.com/EN/News/30261/Riyadh_Conference_the_Gateway_Important_Deliberations_Among_Syrian_Opposition
The Syrian opposition conference in Riyadh is based on the decisions of the Vienna III conference, which took place last November with the participation of 17 countries, including the United States, Russia, Iran and Saudi Arabia.
The final list of the 103 participants included the political and military wings of the Syrian opposition. The Syrian National Coalition is represented by 21 figureS, armed opposition forces are represented by 19 figureS, while there are 63 figures from different opposition currents and entities, most notably the National Coordination Commission, the Cairo Conference, Building the Syrian State Current, as well as independent dissidents, public figures and activists.
AP reports picked up here:
http://www.bdtonline.com/news/syrian-opposition-groups-meet-in-saudi-arabia-to-close-ranks/article_6f278e85-83e0-5bb3-952a-c5ef9a7f4dec.html
The largest bloc at the meeting, with around 20 delegates, is the Western-backed opposition group known as the Syrian National Coalition. Also in attendance are representatives of the Syria-based National Coordination Body. In total, fewer than 10 women are taking part.
Rebel factions at the talks include the Western-backed Free Syrian Army, the Saudi-backed Jaysh al-Islam and Ahrar al-Sham — groups that had long rejected any negotiations with Assad's government so long as he remained in power.
Notably absent were Kurdish opposition factions, such as the People's Protection Units, which is known by its Kurdish acronym the YPG. It's the main Kurdish fighting force battling the Islamic State group in Syria. However, there are ethnic Kurds at the talks from among the broader opposition groups invited.
The YPG is participating in a concurrent conference in Syria's northern province of Hassakeh that is unrelated to the Riyadh gathering and that is led by the U.S.-backed Syrian Democratic Forces, of which the YPG is a member.
Over the past year, ties between Saudi Arabia and Turkey have strengthened around their mutual support for Sunni groups fighting Assad's Iranian-backed government. The decision to exclude Kurdish groups is widely seen as a gesture to appease Turkey, which is wary of Kurdish ambitions for an independent state in the region.
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Sounds like a fun crowd.
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