Peace talks to end the war in Syria intensified Wednesday with the inclusion of a pro-Russian opposition group, as the UN widened efforts to find a political solution to the five-year conflict. The entry into the Geneva talks of the so-called Moscow Group followed Russia's surprise decision to withdraw most of its forces from Syria, where they had been fighting in support of President Bashar al-Assad.
Western governments voiced hopes the move - which continued Wednesday as more Russian planes pulled out of their air base in Syria - could boost the talks by pressuring Assad.
In another sign of the conflict changing on the ground, military analysts IHS Jane's said the Islamic State (IS) group has lost 22 percent of the territory it held in both Syria and Iraq at the start of 2015.
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