Cautious calm prevails in cease-fire area in Syria's Idlib

Damascus, March 21 (IANS) Cautious calm is prevailing in part of Idlib province in northwestern Syria as a cease-fire has been in place for 15 days, a war monitor has reported.The cease-fire, which was brokered by Turkey and Russia and went into force on March 5, is still holding in spite of some violations, said the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.The UK-based watchdog group said the areal bombardment has stopped during the last 15 days.

The cease-fire agreement comes after direct confrontation between Turkey and Syrian forces took place several times in Idlib over the past two months since the Syrian forces launched a campaign against the Turkey-backed rebel groups, Xinhua news agency reported.The current cease-fire was seen as a chance to quell the confrontation in Idlib, so as to allow humanitarian help to reach Syrian refugees who left their areas during the recent military showdown.
--IANS sdr/