Syrian activists join talks

 GENEVA – The Obama administration moved to expand contacts with opponents of Syria’s President Bashar Assad on Tuesday as Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton held a rare meeting with Syrian opposition figures.

 Amid reports of a new surge in violence, Clinton told Syrian pro-reform activists in Geneva that she wanted to hear their plans to establish a new democratic government if they are successful in prying Assad and his regime from power.

 The invitation was a step short of endorsement.

Associated Press