Russia open to hard-liners attending Syria peace talks

Russia said on Wednesday it supports the inclusion of all opposition parties in Syrian peace talks, including representatives of two hard-line Islamic groups, as President Bashar Assad's troops captured a village north of Syria's largest city with the aid of Russian airstrikes.

Syria's official SANA news agency reported the capture of Hardatneen, north of Aleppo, as UN envoy Staffan de Mistura kicked off what he called a second day of peace talks in Geneva by hosting a government delegation for the second time since Friday.

He said he would meet with the main opposition group later in the day.

But opposition figures said they had no scheduled meeting with de Mistura today, and condemned what one member called the "crazy escalation" by Syrian and Russian forces around Aleppo.

"We need the international community to intervene with Russia to stop its indiscriminate bombings," opposition figure Farah Atassi said.

"It's clear from the current situation that the regime and its allies, in particular Russia, are determined to reject the UN's effort to implement international law," she added.

US Secretary of State John Kerry, speaking from Rome at an international conference focusing on the battle against the Islamic State group, also called for a halt to the bombing.

"We are all extraordinarily sympathetic to the limits of propriety and common sense in the opposition sitting at the table while someone continues to bomb them," Kerry said.

He added that the UN agreement underpinning the talks states that "when the political dialogue begins, there will be a cease-fire.

The expectation is that it shouldn't take long."

"We're not requiring people to sit at the table for months. This is a matter of now," Kerry said. "We expect a cease-fire. And we expect adherence to a cease-fire. And we expect full humanitarian access."

Gareth Bayley, the British special envoy for Syria, took aim at Moscow's tactics, tweeting: "Reports of further intense Russian strikes in Syria on moderate opposition in Aleppo and Homs. While Russia talks, it also bombs."

Moscow has been a key ally of the Syrian government throughout the five-year uprising and began launching airstrikes on behalf of Assad's troops four months ago.