Russian air strikes in Syria 'good thing': Del Ponte

Former war crimes prosecutor Carla Del Ponte, who is currently probing rights abuses in Syria, on Monday backed Russia's air strikes on "terrorist groups" in the war-torn country.

"Overall, I think the Russian intervention is a good thing, because finally someone is attacking these terrorist groups," Del Ponte told Swiss public broadcaster RTS, listing the Islamic State group and Al-Nusra among the groups targeted.

But Del Ponte, a member of the UN Commission of Inquiry on Syria, quickly added that the Russians apparently "are not distinguishing enough between the terrorists and others, and that is not as good."

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"If you want a ceasefire, if you want peace, you first have to negotiate with the government," she said, pointing out that the late Serbian leader Slobodan Milosevic was already under investigation when the US negotiated the 1995 Dayton accord with him that ended Yugoslavia's bloody war.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/wires/afp/article-3437674/Russian-air-strikes-Syria-good-thing-Del-Ponte.html