DAMASCUS, May 23 (Xinhua) -- Syrian President Bashar al-Assad stressed Thursday his resolution to continue fighting "terrorism" in tandem with efforts for a political solution to the country's crisis, as the Syrian army has pushed deeper into a strategic city against armed rebels.
Assad made the remarks while meeting with a Tunisian delegation, to whom he said his administration will keep fighting "terrorism" and "those who back it" in parallel with embracing a political approach to end the crisis.
The president's remarks came as the Syrian troops are making strides in their fight against the rebels, especially in the central strategic city of al-Qussair where battles are crucial for both sides.
Report said the Syrian army achieved a new advancement Thursday in the northern part of al-Qussair, tightening its grip on the main stronghold of the rebels in the city.
Rami Abdulrahman, head of the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, said the army troops backed by fighters from the Lebanese Hezbollah group succeeded in storming large swathes in al-Hamidieh town in northern al-Qussair after intense and repetitive attacks over the past couple of days.
He added that the forces are also maximizing pressure on the town of Arjoun near al-Hamidieh to complete their siege on the rebels inside.
Another report, meanwhile, said the army was preparing to regain al-Daba'a airbase from the rebels' hands.
Early Sunday, the army pushed its way into al-Qussair after taking control of its countryside in a 46-day military operation.
The Syrian army's wide-scale offensive aims to cut the rebels' main supply line in the central region of Syria, analysts say.
Despite the army's advancement that empowers the position of President Assad, the ex-leader of the exiled opposition's National Coalition, Moaz al-Khatib, made a surprising remarks Thursday, calling on Assad to renounce power in a timeframe of 20 days and to take 500 members of his administration and leave the country to any place that would offer them asylum.
Adel Naiseh, a Syrian-based opponent, dismissed al-Khatib's initiative and advised him to "stay completely away from politics because it doesn't fit you."
He said the initiative is "trifle and empty of any political content."
For its part, the National Coalition said al-Khatib's initiative was "personal" in a stark sign of the opposition forces ' division.
Yet, the coalition stance was not far from al-Khatib's proposal, as its members said Thursday that President Assad must resign in order for them to embark on negotiations with the Syrian government in the planned international conference in Geneva next month.
Such condition would surely be dismissed by Damascus, whose government is still studying its options regarding the conference.
Qadri Jamil, the minister of Domestic Trade, said Thursday that the Syrian government will announce its last decision regarding its participation in the conference when it reaches a full concept regarding the conference's agendas.
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