US, Russian FMs Hail Ceasefire in Syria

Russia’s Foreign Ministry said on Saturday that Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry have hailed the start of the truce and discussed ways to intensify coordination between the defense agencies of the two countries on a systematic basis, TASS reported.

Less than an hour before it was due to begin, the UN Security Council adopted a resolution supporting the ceasefire and UN Syria envoy Staffan de Mistura called new peace talks for March 7 if it holds and more humanitarian aid reaches civilians. As for the war on terrorism, it will continue during and after the truce according to Putin who confirmed that Russian forces will continue overflights in Syria and the bombing of sites where ISIS and Al-Nusra Front are located.

“What the world needs to understand is that you have groups that said yes to a ceasefire, these are groups that are seeking peace, but we won’t give up our revolution, we won’t give up our goal to knock down this regime”, Ghadri said.

A Syrian government tank in an operation against Isil near Aleppo. “But for the first time there is a chance of a real respite”.

Moscow has vowed to keep striking IS, Al-Nusra and other “terrorist groups”, but said it grounded its warplanes in the Syria campaign on the first day of the truce to avoid potential “mistakes”. The fighting began after midnight Friday and was still ongoing, Sillo said.

The Syrian government has said the cessation plan could fail if foreign states supply rebels with weapons or insurgents use the truce to rearm.

The Syrian government said it would obey the agreement, but would not stop fighting extremist groups such as the Islamic State (IS).

However, Syrian state media said several shells had hit residential areas of the capital, Damascus.

With every hour that the truce holds, “the hope of peace in Syria rises for millions of Syrian people, not only in the country itself but also for those who have fled war and terror”.

The UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said the explosion was the work of Isil, adding that the two killed were soldiers.

Talal Sillo, a spokesman for the predominantly Kurdish Syria Democratic Forces, said Saturday that the IS fighters have attacked the town of Tal Abyad.

It called for a cessation of hostilities between the forces of Russian-backed President Bashar al-Assad and almost one hundred opposition groups.

“In Latakia, calm, and at the Hmeimim air base there is no plane activity”, he said in reference to the Latakia base where Russia’s warplanes operate from.

On Thursday, US President Barack Obama said the proposed ceasefire could be a key step towards ending Syria’s war.

“There are areas where the bombardment has stopped, but there are areas where there are violations by the regime such as Kafr Zeita in Hama, via targeting with artillery, and likewise in Morek in northern Hama countryside”, said Mr Fares Bayoush, the head of the Fursan al-Haqq rebel group, which fights under the banner of the Free Syrian Army.

He said Russian Federation and the US militaries had given each other maps showing the location of opposition groups pledging to observe the cessation of hostilities, as well as Daesh and Nusra units.