Jihadists and Turkish-backed rebels in Syria’s last major opposition stronghold withdraw most of their heavy weapons from a planned buffer zone, ahead of tomorrow’s deadline, a monitor says.
The pullback is the first major test of a deal brokered by government ally Russia and rebel-backer Turkey last month to avoid what the United Nations warned would be the appalling humanitarian consequences of a major government offensive.
Under the agreement, all factions have until Wednesday to withdraw heavy weaponry from the 15- to 20-kilometer (nine- to 12-mile) wide buffer zone, which rings Idlib province and adjacent areas of the northwest.
And by next Monday, the buffer zone must be free of all jihadists, including those of the region’s dominant armed group, the Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) alliance led by Al-Qaeda’s former Syria branch.
— AFP
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