GENEVA – In a blustery square across the street from the United Nations headquarters in Geneva, five Syrian women stood silent and still, each holding an elegantly framed photograph.
Just minutes earlier, a scattered group of activists and journalists had watched as the women exited the fortified UN compound and solemnly proceeded into the adjacent square. They had managed to secure a midday meeting with UN Syria envoy Staffan de Mistura, despite the chaos surrounding the first day of the latest round of Syria peace talks.
