The Syrian opposition on Sunday rejected a plan agreed by world powers that called for a transitional government to end the crisis but fell short of demanding that President Bashar al-Assad step down, dpa reported.
"We know that a political treatment is required for this complex situation, but it is not acceptable to jump over all sacrifices made by the Syrian people who demand the ouster of the regime," Abdul-Basset Sayda, the head of the key opposition Syrian National Council, told the pan-Arab Asharq al-Awsat newspaper.
World powers agreed during talks on Saturday in Geneva that a Syrian transitional government that includes members of al-Assad's regime and the opposition be set up to end the violence, which the opposition says has so far killed more than 14,000 people.
There was no official comment in Damascus. However, state media Sunday said the transitional plan would not end the crisis.
"Solving the Syrian crisis cannot take place without Syria and its people who are capable of launching a national dialogue," the state-run newspaper Al-Baath wrote in an editorial.
Neither the government nor the opposition attended the talks.In a victory for Russia, Annan, who convened the meeting, dropped a demand backed by Western powers that al-Assad step down. The plan did not state what role al-Assad might play in the transition.
Annan said time was running out to end the escalating violence, which could spiral into a regional or international crisis.