The agreement does not apply to the Islamic State, also known as ISIL or ISIS, or the al-Qaeda-linked Nusra Front terrorist groups.
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A Syrian shopkeeper waits for customers next to paintings of of President Bashar Assad, and Hezbollah leader Sheikh Hassan Nasrallah, center, at the popular Souk Tawil old market in Damascus, Syria, Wednesday, Feb. 24, 2016. Ru…
Syria’s main opposition group, the High Negotiations Committee, has said it supports a two-week truce in Syria, to test the other side’s commitment to the plan.
The agreement, called a “cessation of hostilities”, should stop the fighting between those parties and allow aid groups to deliver humanitarian supplies and services to areas that have been besieged by government forces backed with Russian airstrikes.
“Everybody knows what needs to happen”, Obama said, welcoming a partial ceasefire that has ravaged Syria for five years, killing 270,000 people and displacing more than half of the population.
The resolution calls for a resumption of peace talks “as soon as possible (and)… urges the representatives of the Syrian government and the Syrian opposition to engage in good faith in these negotiations”.
“We remain relentless in going after them”, he said.
Russian Federation and the United States have set a deadline of midnight on Friday for the temporary cease-fire to take effect between the Syrian government and opposition forces.
This may quickly derail the deal, as the opposition and its supporters have already said they are concerned the Syrian government and Russian Federation will continue to strike at mainstream rebels under the pretext of hitting Nusra during the cease-fire.
Obama said he was “certain” those groups would continue to fight, but stressed that the US-led coalition was winning the war against IS, citing territorial gains.
“We have reached a provisional agreement in principle on the terms of a cessation of hostilities that could begin in the coming days”, Kerry said during a visit to the Jordanian capital of Amman, adding, “The modalities for a cessation of hostilities are now being completed”. Obama said Assad should step down if a lasting peace is to be found in Syria. “We’re all aware of the many potential pitfalls, and there are plenty of reasons for skepticism, but history would judge us harshly if we did not do our part in at least trying to end this bad conflict with diplomacy”, he said.
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‘There’s no alternative to a managed transition away from Assad, ‘ Obama said.
