Syria cease-fire is holding despite some fighting — United Nations envoy

Mar 04, 2016, 03:47

With no breakthrough on the horizon regarding the cessation of hostilities and access for humanitarian aid, de Mistura said he could "slightly" postpone the next round of peace talks, which has been scheduled for Monday, March 7. Some will be provided via air drops.

De Mistura wants the Syrian sides to focus on constitutional reform, governance, and hopes elections can be held in 18 months. Operations against Islamic State - also known as Daesh - and the Nusra Front were going ahead. Some envoys could arrive as late as March 14, he said.

The area being fought over in Latakia overlooks the rebel-held town of Jisr al-Shughour in neighbouring Idlib province, and the Ghab Plain, where rebel advances a year ago were seen as a growing threat to Assad.

The amount of food aid delivered by Russian Federation to Syrian civilians is also noted in the report.

State news agency SANA said insurgents fired seven shells at the government-held neighborhoods of Sabeel and the airport in the city of Daraa, where the country's crisis began in March 2011. The Observatory said several people were wounded.

The Russian and the USA co-chairs of the International Syrian Support Group launched a mechanism for implementation of control over observance of the ceasefire by the Syrian government and armed opposition groups.

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The truce remains fragile amid reports of violations in different parts of Syria.

However, such scenes may seem to clash with reality, where accusations of violations by all sides in the civil war threaten to derail the cease-fire.

"We all hope it will help make the area safer", villager Ali Aty Muhammad said of the deal.

A woman with baby stroller stays near a bus with a portrait of Syrian President Bashar Assad in the window on a road near Latakia in Syria on Wednesday, March 2, 2016. "Just to give up your armament, whether you want to join the political process or are not interested about the political process", he said, as translated by the Associated Press. "This is the only thing that we ask".

The president also offered a wide amnesty to opposition fighters if they agree to disarm.

"Lavrov's remarks are a product of a futile effort made to cover up [Russia's] war crimes in Syria", Bilgic added.

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The much-lauded ceasefire has brought relative calm to swathes of territory in Syria's north, south, and around the capital, where civilians have resumed their tradition of daily demonstrations.

Pushkov described his country as being one of the three world powers of the globe today, placing Russian Federation on par with the United States and China. Officials say it has largely eased the violence since taking effect Saturday.

Bilgic said Russian Federation had a "world-renowned" reputation for violating human rights. "Unfortunately, we have to admit... there are still a number of places where fighting has continued", he added.

The Russians blamed the shelling on the Islamic State group and the Nusra Front, al-Qaida's Syrian branch.

"They agreed on the importance of urgently moving forward simultaneously on implementing the cessation of hostilities agreement, providing vital humanitarian assistance to civilians, and returning to political negotiations", the statement said. Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov called for the closure of Syria's border with Turkey to prevent supplies reaching "terrorist" groups. No casualties were reported.

Reporters were walking across the village and talking to locals when the first shell struck a hillside a few hundred meters away.

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