By Mariam Karouny
BEIRUT (Reuters) - Syrian insurgent group Ahrar al-Sham, an ally of the al Qaeda-linked Nusra Front, said on Wednesday it had held talks with an Iranian delegation over the embattled Syrian city of Zabadani near the Lebanese border but that these had now been halted.
Sources close to both sides said the two sides had been in negotiations for several weeks in Turkey and that discussions included the fate of residents of two Shi'ite villages in the northwestern province of Idlib.
Such talks between a Sunni Islamist group and Shi'ite Iran, which backs Syrian President Bashar al-Assad in Syria's four-year-old conflict, would be highly unusual.
"We announce to our people halting of the negotiations with the Iranian delegation due to their determination to empty Zabadani of civilians and fighters and displace them to another areas," the group said.
Iranian-backed Hezbollah fighters have been battling insurgents in Zabadani and the surrounding area, about 10 km (6 miles) from the border with Lebanon.
The statement said that a plan to "empty the towns and areas near the border with Lebanon from Sunni presence" was in its final stages.
The sources familiar with the talks told Reuters they expected negotiations to resume.
CIVILIANS
According to the sources, the Sunni insurgents and Iranian delegation discussed several scenarios focussed on moving civilians out of several Syrian towns, including Zabadani.
An alliance of Islamist insurgents known as the "Army of Fatah", which includes Ahrar al Sham, had targeted Al Foua and Kefraya, in Idlib province where thousands of civilians are under rebel siege.
A spokesman for Ahrar al-Sham declined to comment on the talks, citing the sensitivity of the subject.
Ahrar al-Sham group, which is widely described by analysts as an ultra orthodox Salafist group and considers Iran as an enemy.
One of the sources familiar with the talks and who is close to Damascus, said the Syrian government was aware of the talks, which he said were being held through a mediator.
"At first the negotiations were with the government, but then it collapsed after the group came under heavy pressure from other groups. Then they came back and asked to talk to the Iranians," the source told Reuters.
Taking Zabadani from the insurgents would be a strategic gain for the Syrian army which is battling on several other fronts against numerous insurgent groups.
Hezbollah's military role inside Syria has been growing steadily since the start of the conflict in 2011. The Syrian government has described the group as its main ally in the fight against the insurgents battling to topple Assad.