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Russia and Turkey announce Syrian ceasefire without extremist groups


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Russia and Turkey announce Syrian ceasefire without extremist groups

 

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MOSCOW: -- Syria, Russia and Turkey have declared that a ceasefire will come into effect at midnight on Thursday in Syria – but it won’t include Islamic state or a group which once had links to al-Qaida.

 

Vladimir Putin sounded a note of caution:

 

“The agreements reached are of course fragile and need special attention and involvement for their preservation and development. But nevertheless, this is a notable result of our joint work.”

 

The main opposition group the Syrian National Coalition says it supports the ceasefire, which is one of many that have been attempted by the UN, the US, Russia and Turkey at various times.

 

Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said details on who would act as guarantors of the ceasefire were still being worked out.

 

“Regarding the agreement that will be signed by the regime, there is nothing final on whether Russia will be the only guarantor to sign it or whether it will be signed by Iran as well. But it is agreed that Russia will be a guarantor,” he said.

 

Russia and Turkey remain on opposing sides: Russia is militarily supporting Syria’s president Bashar al-Assad whilst Turkey wants to see him ousted.

 

Russian support for the regime has seen a reversal of fortune for Assad. Before the Russians began air strikes on Assad’s enemies he was losing the war. Now, after more than a year of strikes, Assad has regained control of the strategically important second city Aleppo which may turn out to be the turning point in the conflict.

 

Meanwhile the horror continues for civilians as the nearly six year old war grinds on.

 

Forty people, including several children, were killed in air strikes on Thursday targeting rebel-held territory in the Eastern Ghouta suburbs of Damascus, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said.

 

 
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-- © Copyright Euronews 2016-12-30
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Cease-fire goes into force in war-ravaged Syria

By BASSEM MROUE and VLADIMIR ISACHENKOV

 

BEIRUT (AP) — A cease-fire brokered by Russia and Turkey went into effect in war-ravaged Syria at midnight Thursday, a potential breakthrough in the six years of fighting that have left more than a quarter-million people dead and triggered a refugee crisis across Europe.

 

If it holds, the truce between the Syrian government and the country's mainstream rebel forces will be followed by peace talks next month in Kazakhstan, Russian President Vladimir Putin said in announcing the agreement. He described it, however, as "quite fragile" and requiring "special attention and patience."

 

The first half-hour of the cease-fire was one of "comprehensive calm," said Rami Abdurrahman, head of the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights. He said that before the truce came into force, the government was bombing several areas, including the province of Aleppo and suburbs of the capital, Damascus.

 

The truce had the backing of both Russia, Syria's chief battlefield ally, and Turkey, which has been supporting the rebels. Russia said the deal was signed by seven of Syria's major rebel factions, though none of them immediately confirmed it, and one of them denied signing.

 

Several previous cease-fires in the Syrian civil war all collapsed, some of them in a matter of days. And this latest agreement, like previous ones, does not include extremist factions such as the Islamic State group and al-Qaida's branch in Syria.

 

Still, the deal raised hopes for a political settlement to the ruinous war, in part because the landscape has significantly shifted recently.

 

For one thing, the tide has turned in Syrian President Bashar Assad's favor militarily over the past year, with the government retaking the city of Aleppo from the rebels just days ago. Also, Turkey, which is fighting Kurdish and Islamic militants at home, appears more willing to strike a bargain with Russia if it means protecting its borders.

 

"This is a different political scene, and one would expect some outcomes to emerge," said Hilal Khashan, political science professor at the American University of Beirut. He cautioned, however, against expecting immediate results from the first round of talks.

 

Syrian Foreign Minister Walid al-Moallem welcomed the cease-fire agreement said there is a "real chance" for a political settlement.

 

In comments made to Syrian TV, he said the Syrian government will attend the peace talks "with an open mind," but he suggested it would not be willing to compromise on Assad's fate. Assad's remaining in power has been a major sticking point in the crisis.

 

"Everything is negotiable except national sovereignty and the people's right to choose its leadership," al-Moallem said.

 

Putin said the cease-fire will be guaranteed by both Moscow and Turkey. Turkey has been allowing opposition forces to use its long border with Syria to cross back and forth. The agreement was also praised by Iran, another of Assad's strongest backers.

 

Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu said that the truce will include 62,000 opposition fighters across Syria and that the Russian military has established a hotline with its Turkish counterpart to monitor compliance. Sergey Lavrov, Russia's foreign minister, said President-elect Donald Trump's administration will be welcome to join the peace process once he takes office.

 

Putin said he ordered the Russian military to scale back its presence in Syria, where it has provided crucial support to Assad's forces. Putin didn't say how many troops and weapons will be withdrawn. He said Russia will continue "fighting international terrorism in Syria" and supporting Assad's military.

 

The U.N. special envoy for Syria, Staffan de Mistura, welcomed the cease-fire announcement, saying he hopes the agreement will save civilian lives, facilitate the delivery of humanitarian aid and pave the way for productive peace talks.

 

Earlier Thursday, Turkey called on Hezbollah to withdraw its fighters from Syria. The Iranian-backed extremist group has sent thousands of fighters to support Assad and has been playing an instrumental role in the civil war since 2013.

 

Foreign fighters from around the world have joined both sides of the Syrian conflict, which has displaced half the country's population and produced more than 4 million refugees. Many of those refugees have been streaming into Europe, fueling anti-immigration sentiment and terrorist fears that are reshaping the continent's political landscape.

 

Syria's military noted that the cease-fire comes after the "successes achieved by the armed forces," an apparent reference to the fierce fighting in Aleppo.

 

Osama Abo Zayd, a spokesman for mainstream Syrian opposition groups, told reporters in the Turkish capital of Ankara that 13 armed opposition factions have signed the agreement.

 

He said the peace talks will be based on the Geneva 2012 declaration that calls for a governing body with full executive powers to run Syria during a transition period. "This means that there will be no presence for Assad in the future," he said.

 

However, Khashan, the political analyst, said Assad's exit is "out of the question." ''Neither the Russians nor the Iranians would allow it to happen," he said.

 

Saeed Sadek, a professor of political sociology at Cairo's Future University, said Assad has no power to accept or reject any deals.

 

"He is now under the control of Moscow, Tehran and Ankara. All these countries will decide his future," he said.

___

Isachenkov reported from Moscow. Associated Press writers Suzan Fraser in Ankara, Najib Jobain in Cairo and Zeina Karam in Beirut contributed to this report.

 
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-- © Associated Press 2016-12-30
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Well, wouldn't it be the best news in a long long time, if this actually leads to peace, it should also lead towards an exodus of refugees from Europe.
At least those who really fled the horror could then return, however to a country blown to smithereens...but still.
Anyway, if this happens, 2017 might not turn out so bad after all....both for the refugees, and for Europe.
Hallelujah!

Sent from my SM-G930F using Thaivisa Connect mobile app

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