UN-Arab League envoy Lakhdar Brahimi said Friday that a proposed Geneva peace conference to end the war in Syria could not be held without the participation of the opposition

UN-Arab League envoy Lakhdar Brahimi said Friday that a proposed Geneva peace conference to end the war in Syria could not be held without the participation of the opposition.
  
"If the opposition does not participate there will be no Geneva conference," Brahimi said at a news conference in Damascus before returning to Beirut as part of a regional tour to try to garner support for the US and Russian backed peace initiative.
  
"The participation of the opposition is essential, necessary and important," the veteran Algerian diplomat said, adding the proposed conference was intended "to help the Syrians and resolve their problems".
  
Brahimi, who met with President Bashar al-Assad on Wednesday, said "the Syrian government has agreed to participate in Geneva". "The opposition, whether the National Coalition or others, are trying to find a way to be represented," he said, referring to the main opposition bloc.