Al Assad's chance to end bloodshed

Bashar Al Assad's decision to agree to a much awaited peace plan and allow a team of United Nations members to enter Syria presents him with a fantastic opportunity to try and resurrect his flagging equity. The occasion should not, therefore, be blighted by an escalation in violence ahead of the April 10 deadline for a ceasefire.

The proposal made by Kofi Annan calls for the withdrawal of troops and heavy military equipment from populated areas — first by Syrian government forces and then by the opposition. The halt in fighting is expected to cultivate a round of talks aimed at reaching a political solution.

The Syrian forces have agreed to talks in the past only to resort to violence by blaming the rebels for instigating them. It is a sound tactic and explains why the military is taking position on the outskirts of the city limits in tense areas. The fact that the opposition is weak, divided, wracked by infighting and power struggles also helps Al Assad endorse this scheme.

While he does not want to lose control, Al Assad must make a genuine effort to harvest the fruits of a diplomatic process given that he must now comply. At the very least it would be foolish for him to waste the opportunity.