Syria has offered to hold talks with the armed rebels trying to overthrow President Bashar al-Assad.
The Syrian proposal was made by Foreign Minister Walid al-Muallem after talks on February 25 in Moscow with Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, who said the situation in Syria was "at the crossroads."
Mustapha Abdel-Karim, a member of the rebels' military council, however, rejected the offer.
Meanwhile, the Syrian National Coalition said it will now attend a conference in Rome to drum up support for the opposition, reversing an earlier decision to boycott the February 28 gathering to protest "the world's silence" over the violence in Syria.
Inside Syria, loud explosions and gunfire were reported late on February 25 in the capital, Damascus.
The state-run news agency SANA said there were multiple casualties from the explosion, which it said was a suicide car bombing.
The Syrian proposal was made by Foreign Minister Walid al-Muallem after talks on February 25 in Moscow with Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, who said the situation in Syria was "at the crossroads."
Mustapha Abdel-Karim, a member of the rebels' military council, however, rejected the offer.
Meanwhile, the Syrian National Coalition said it will now attend a conference in Rome to drum up support for the opposition, reversing an earlier decision to boycott the February 28 gathering to protest "the world's silence" over the violence in Syria.
Inside Syria, loud explosions and gunfire were reported late on February 25 in the capital, Damascus.
The state-run news agency SANA said there were multiple casualties from the explosion, which it said was a suicide car bombing.