Alwaght- A nationwide ceasefire in Syria came into effect on Monday with regional and international support amid conflicting stances by terrorists and their foreign backers.
The truce, which came into effect on the day Muslims are marking Eid ul Adha (Feast of Sacrifice), was brokered by the United States and Russia seems to be unwelcome amongst terrorists groups and their financiers.
The Russian Defense Ministry says that airstrikes against terrorist groups such as ISIS and al-Nusra Front will go ahead, since they are not part of the brokered agreement.
Moscow also says that the Russian Reconciliation Center in Syria has established special monitoring groups in all Syrian provinces to observe the cessation of hostilities.
According to Moscow, a joint US-Russian Coordination Center will be established to decide on airstrikes conducted by US-led coalition planes and the Russian Air Force.
The creation of the center was earlier announced by Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and his US counterpart John Kerry in Geneva last Friday.
This ceasefire is backed by the international community and regional states including Iran, Turkey, the Syrian government and the European Union.
The so-called moderate Syrian opposition has issued a statement backing the ceasefire. However, according to the rebel forces the expulsion of Jabhat Fateh al-Sham (Al-Nusra Front) from the deal “diminishes the chances of success for the agreement reached.”
Assad says Syrian government open for reconciliation
Syrian President Bashar Assad said on state TV on Monday that he is determined to drive out terrorists from all the territories they have seized. “The Syrian state is determined to recover every area from the terrorists,” he said. President Assad performed on Monday Eid al-Adha prayers at Saad Ibn Muaz Mosque in Daraya city in Damascus Countryside. He called on the Syrians to walk towards reconciliation, stressing that experience, especially over the past three years, showed that the Syrian state has kept all its promises and has always been open for reconciliation and for stopping the bloodshed.
A number of state officials, ministers, MPs and Muslim scholars also observed the prayers, which were led by sheikh Adnan al-Afiouni, Mufti of Damascus and its countryside.
The Syrian government has also given its “strict consent” for observation of the ceasefire, the Russian Reconciliation Center reported. Damascus says it will observe a seven-day ceasefire, TASS reports, citing Syrian local media.
The initial 48-hour truce is crucial for delivering aid to the civilian population, especially in Aleppo.
Saudi-backed terrorists reject ceasefire
The Saudi-backed Ahrar al-Sham terrorist group has rejected the US-Russia brokered ceasefire just hours before its implementation.
The rejection was announced by a top-ranking member of the group via a video statement released on YouTube on Monday. The terrorist group claims that abiding by the truce would only "reinforce" the Syrian government.
The group is a close affiliate of the Fateh al-Sham Front, formerly named the Nusra Front, and is mostly active in Syria’s northern regions. In May, the US blocked Russia’s bid at the UN to add Jaysh al-Islam and Ahrar al-Sham to the list of terrorist groups because of their ties to al-Qaeda and ISIS.
The Syrian crisis cannot be resolved without a ceasefire first but at the same time, there is concern about the armed groups and their commitment to this truce.
Over the past few months, there have been concerted efforts to implement a ceasefire in Syria. However, the foreign backed Takfiri terrorist groups and other armed extremist groups tried to take advantage of these ceasefires to boost their weapon supplies and their military capabilities and to widen the areas that they occupied. But this new ceasefire might last as Syria’s enemies are now more serious about the cessation of hostilities.
Syria's five-year civil war has killed hundreds of thousands of people and displaced 11 million - half the country's prewar population - causing a refugee crisis in the West Asia region and Europe.
Over the past few months, the foreign-backed Takfiri terrorists active in the Arab country have suffered major setbacks as the Syrian army has managed to liberate several areas.
