UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon says Kofi Annan, the new Syria envoy, will meet Syrian President Bashar Assad in Damascus on Saturday morning, Today's Zaman reported.
The UN chief told a group of reporters Friday that Annan's priority is to immediately stop all violence by government forces and opposition fighters - if not simultaneously, then first by government troops, followed by the opposition.
Ban said a cease-fire should be quickly followed by inclusive political talks to resolve the yearlong conflict.
Annan, the former UN secretary-general, was appointed last month as the joint special envoy of the United Nations and the Arab League.