Syrian pro-government forces take a break as they advance in the Jisr al-Haj neighborhood during the ongoing military operation to retake remaining rebel-held areas in the northern embattled city of Aleppo on December 14, 2016. (AFP PHOTO / George OURFALIAN)
GENEVA — The UN’s Syria envoy Staffan de Mistura praised a nationwide ceasefire deal announced Thursday and voiced hope it would help aid reach civilians across the war-ravaged country.
“The Special Envoy welcomes the announcement of a nationwide ceasefire between the Government of Syria and armed opposition groups in Syria,” which is due to take effect at midnight, de Mistura’s office said in a statement.
The UN envoy also hopes that the deal, brokered by Russia and Turkey, “will save civilian lives, facilitate the delivery of humanitarian assistance across Syria, and pave the way for productive talks in Astana,” the statement added.
Moscow, which backs Syria’s regime, and rebel supporter Ankara are pushing for peace talks to start soon in Astana, Kazakhstan’s capital.
A Syrian boy sits with belongings he collected from the rubble of his house in Aleppo’s Al-Arkoub neighborhood on December 17, 2016, after pro-government forces retook the area from rebel fighters. (AFP/Youssef Karwashan)
While de Mistura offered support for those talks, which would take place outside the UN umbrella, he also reiterated that he wants negotiations mediated by his office to continue early next year.
Get The Times of Israel's Daily Editionby email and never miss our top stories
“The Special Envoy is of the view that these developments should contribute to inclusive and productive intra-Syrian negotiations to be convened under UN auspices on 8 February 2017.”
Help us report truthfully on social media
As a multimedia journalist, my job is to take the quality, fact-based journalism produced by The Times of Israel newsroom and make it accessible across every platform — from Instagram posts to podcasts to short-form videos.
This is how many, especially young people, consume news these days. But misinformation is rampant on social media. Our team at ToI produces accurate, responsible short-form reporting on Israel and the Jewish world.
If you believe in the importance of factual social media journalism, please consider joining our reader support group, The Times of Israel Community. Your financial support is essential to sustain responsible multimedia reporting.
We’re really pleased that you’ve read X Times of Israel articles in the past month.
That’s why we started the Times of Israel - to provide discerning readers like you with must-read coverage of Israel and the Jewish world.
So now we have a request. Unlike other news outlets, we haven’t put up a paywall. But as the journalism we do is costly, we invite readers for whom The Times of Israel has become important to help support our work by joining The Times of Israel Community.
For as little as $6 a month you can help support our quality journalism while enjoying The Times of Israel AD-FREE, as well as accessing exclusive content available only to Times of Israel Community members.
Thank you, David Horovitz, Founding Editor of The Times of Israel
Add ToI as a Preferred Source on Google
