Syrian rebel groups wrote to the United States, saying they would “cooperate positively” with a ceasefire but voiced deep concerns over details of the deal as relayed to them, the text of the letter as confirmed by two rebel officials said.
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It did not say when the violence will stop, adding that the U.S. -Russia agreement “was reached with the knowledge and approval of the Syrian government”.
The deal legalizes Russian and regime air strikes and ground attacks against “Nusra” targets, ignoring not only that the group does not exist anymore and another target definition of Islamist extremist terror groups would be needed but also neglecting the proven fact that both Assad’s and Putin’s forces claim to have ONLY targeted “Nusra” since February. -Russian deal that seeks to restart the peace process for the war-torn country, with the leader of at least one US -backed rebel faction publicly calling the offer a “trap”.
The ceasefire was agreed between Russian Federation, which backs Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, and the United States, which backs some rebel groups, to come into effect at sundown on Monday, and excludes some jihadist groups.
But they came as a new ceasefire, agreed as part of a landmark deal brokered by Russian Federation and the USA, was set to begin on Monday, the first day of the Muslim holiday of Eid al-Adha, allowing much needed aid to reach the beleaguered civilian population.
The worst strikes were in Idlib city, the capital of the province of the same name, where warplanes bombed a marketplace, killing at least 58 civilians, many children and women, according to rescue workers and the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.
The agreement envisages joint US-Russian military strikes against militant groups in Syria, including Daesh.
It noted that while Jabhat Fateh al-Sham, formerly known as the Nusra Front, did not undertake activities outside Syria’s frontiers, the “sectarian militias” fighting alongside the government operated across borders.
A barrage of air strikes on rebel-held areas in Syria killed scores of people just hours after Assad’s government approved the truce deal on Saturday.
It was not immediately clear who carried out the raids, which hit the key northern cities of Idlib and Aleppo. In the immediate stage, the call to halt hostilities between Syrian troops and rebel forces will be tested along Aleppo’s Costello Road, a main supply route, and elsewhere.
Kodmani said the opposition would “do our part” to see that rebel groups break ranks with the militants if the truce held.
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“The moderate groups will reorganise and distance themselves from the radical groups”.
