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In Aleppo, friends offer glimmer of hope amid Syria tragedy

A group of young men maintain their bonds of friendship despite differing political views on the Syrian war.
Free Syrian Army fighters sit inside a room as they chat near Aleppo's historic citadel, which is controlled by forces loyal to Syria's President Bashar al-Assad February 10, 2014. Picture taken February 10, 2014. REUTERS/Ammar Abdullah (SYRIA - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL UNREST CONFLICT) - RTX18L1O

ALEPPO, Syria — As the second round of the Geneva II talks gets under way, slow yet perceptible changes are taking place on the ground in Syria. Although nothing concrete was achieved at the first round of talks, that they took place at all, continued without collapsing and then reconvened later is a substantial achievement in itself, at least by this conflict’s standards.

The two sides do not yet see eye to eye on the most divisive matters, and the gulf between their respective expectations still seems insurmountable, but vital discussions about pressing humanitarian issues and confidence-building measures have made progress. The fruit of this progress has been translated on the ground in Homs. The all-important deal to evacuate civilians from its besieged, rebel-held old city was finally put into motion despite the violent attacks Feb. 8-9 on the UN relief convoy by extremists who want to undermine any hint of cooperation, even to assist beleaguered civilians, and who desire to discredit the opposition National Coalition or the government or both, depending on who is responsible for these shameless attacks. Despite encountering some difficulties, it will hopefully be a precedent for more such cooperation.

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