UN Syria talks resume after virus cases forced suspension

GENEVA – The U.N. envoy for Syria says talks between government, opposition and civil society delegations will resume Thursday after a three-day pause caused by positive cases of coronavirus among four participants.

Geir Pedersen says the talks will resume “with all the necessary precautions” after medical advisers deemed that earlier positive cases did not pose any additional risk of spread.

The delegations are discussing a possible new constitution for the war-battered country — a step Pedersen has called a prospective “door-opener” to a final resolution of Syria’s devastating nine-year civil war.

The meeting is the first of its kind in nine months. The pandemic forced the postponement of an earlier meeting in March. Participants were tested for coronavirus before and after arrival in Geneva, Pedersen’s office has said.