Russia’s Putin announces ceasefire in Syria from midnight
Several rebel officials said they had agreed to the ceasefire that would exclude the Islamic State, ex-Nusra Front militants and all groups linked to them would be excluded from the deal
Russian President Vladimir Putin announced a ceasefire between Syrian opposition groups and the Syrian government starting at midnight on Thursday.
The parties were also prepared to start peace talks, Putin said, after Moscow, Iran and Turkey expressed readiness to broker a deal to settle the nearly six-year-old Syrian war.
The agreements reached are, of course, fragile, need a special attention and involvement ... But after all, this is a notable result of our joint work
The Syrian army announced a nationwide halt to fighting but said Islamic State and ex-Nusra Front militants and all groups linked to them would be excluded from the deal. It did not say which unnamed groups would be excluded.
Several rebel officials said they had agreed to the ceasefire, due to come into effect at 2200 GMT on Thursday.
One rebel commander expressed optimism that this deal would hold: “This time I have confidence in its seriousness. There is new international input,” he said, without elaborating.
