. ♪ >> joining me now from montreal switzerland is nick schifrin. these first day's deliberations expose how far apart the parties really are? >> they absolutely did, ray. i think the word a lot of people here are using is the chasm. you have one side denying that nay have to even consider talking about removing assad from power. we saw in an interview that assad was considering running for president again in the next election. and you have the other side all saying they have agreed to geneva 1, to create a transitional government that would not include assad at all. and the rhetoric, very inflammatory. you heard from the syrian foreign minister, and the syrian oppositioning a kuzed the government of being terrorists, that's a word they are both using for each other. and the u.s. is really trying to tamp down expectations. they are saying this is a victory simply by being here. the fact that we're here is a victory, we understand that we're not going to get any kind of quick peace of break through in the next couple of days, but at least we're talki

mention that the talks which are scheduled to continue on friday the orchestra of our team montreal switzerland. under the law makers facing a shortage of people drugs use to carry out the back mentally. advanced a bill that could bring back the electric chair in state house of delegates in virginia pass the measure yesterday sixty four to thirty two. the bill allows the prisoner can choose the method of execution and puts me the injection as the default but if the alternative is not available but says the remaining method of execution shall be employed the main electrocution according to the gap and information center right now only six states still authorize the use of the electric chair the states alabama florida kentucky south carolina and tennessee and virginia. but historically in those states have only need to use the electric chair if an inmate personally request said. since inmates were given the option in nineteen ninety five only six of the eighty five inmates executed since then i've chosen electrocution over lethal injection. a fairfax county democrat had this to say about the new

switzerland . international peace conference on syria taking place here in this small swiss town of montreal on the shores of lake geneva is truly an international achievement it took so much time and so much effort but it's finally going to happen. and the rebels after years of fighting and unimaginable violence are going to finally sit down and negotiate but if the government did confirm that it was going to take part in a composition long time ago. position even in my last twenty four hours and mainly because of iran a key regional player which was also supposed to take part in moscow and washington which had been pretty much organizing this conference had been saying that its success why the head of this nation anyone with an influence on the situation there in syria and turn around is definitely one of these. you remember how the opposition reacted to the u.n. envoy they made revoke the returning the tickets in six hours time all in all this is an ugly situation. that iran not taking part in the conference is not a catastrophe but it will definitely not help unite the muslim community in the f