Special to WorldTribune.com

Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty

Heavy rebel shelling and government air strikes killed dozens in the Syrian capital just hours before Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif arrived and met with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.

Heavy rebel shelling of mostly upscale government-controlled areas in central Damascus and government air strikes on the eastern Ghouta region, a rebel stronghold, killed at least 36 people and wounded dozens around the morning rush hour on August 12.

Assad and Zarif were expected to discuss a four-point proposal Iran wants to offer to the United Nations to end Syria’s civil war.

Iran is one of Assad’s strongest backers, and has been marketing itself as a key player that could help resolve Syria’s crisis following the successfully brokered nuclear deal.
Western and Arab nations say that Assad must go as part of any resolution of the conflict, which has killed more than 250,000 people since it broke out in March 2011.

Spokeswoman Marzieh Afkham told Iranian state news agency IRNA that the Syrian peace plan, which Iran plans to present to the United Nations, is based on “respect for the Syrian people’s legitimate right to reforms and to decide their own future.”

It rejects “using terrorism for political ends” as well as “foreign interference in the Syrian government,” she said, adding that more details will be revealed after Zarif’s visit to Syria.

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