MOSCOW, Dec. 18 (Xinhua) -- Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov on Wednesday urged the Syrian government and opposition groups to unite against international terrorism.
"We worry very much that international terrorists have been rooted in Syria more deeply, affecting the situation more and more," Lavrov told reporters.
He said the terrorists attempted to distance themselves from al-Qaida, but their Jihadist possession bore the main threat to the entire Middle East.
He also noted that the topic should be included on the agenda of the upcoming Geneva-II conference slated for mid-January.
Terrorism-related abductions have been frequent in Syria as the country's political crisis is about to enter its third year without a sign of easy conclusion. On Tuesday, a Turkish journalist was reportedly kidnapped by al-Qaida-affiliated groups in Syria.
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