Syria’s warring parties declared a 48-hour ceasefire in a frontline area on Wednesday after a month of unprecedented mediation from Turkey and Iran, signalling a new approach by some regional powers backing opposing sides in the conflict.
The ceasefire halted fighting between insurgents on the one hand, and the army and its Lebanese militant Hezbollah allies on the other, in the rebel-held town of Zabadani and in a pair of Shia Muslim villages in Idlib province.
The two areas are strongholds of each side under ferocious attack by the other, meaning both could benefit from a ceasefire by evacuating civilians or combatants.
Three officials close to Damascus described the truce as a result of mediation by Turkey, which backs rebels fighting against President Bashar al-Assad, and Iran, whose support has been vital to his survival.
It was among the strongest signs yet of a new regional approach towards a conflict that has killed a quarter of a million people, made 10 million homeless, left swathes of Syria in the hands of Islamic State (IS) militants and divided the countries of the Middle East on sectarian grounds.
After four years in which international diplomacy made no headway towards peace, countries that support Assad and his opponents have been quietly discussing ways to end the war and tackle the common threat from IS. But Assad’s fate remains a major obstacle to the new diplomatic effort.
The Iranian foreign minister was due in Damascus later on Wednesday and expected to discuss a new peace plan for Syria.
Sources on both sides of the civil war earlier on Wednesday said the truce was to begin at 6am (local time), and negotiations would continue. The rebel group Ahrar al-Sham had led the talks on the insurgents’ side.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a Britain-based group that reports on the war, said no fighting had been reported in Zabadani, Kefraya or al-Foua after the ceasefire’s agreed start time.
“So far there is calm,” Rami Abdulrahman, who runs the Observatory, said.
Zabadani, about 45km northwest of the capital Damascus and about 10km from the border with Lebanon, has been the focus of a weeks-long offensive by the army and Hezbollah aimed at wresting control of the town from rebels.
The United Nations envoy for Syria said last month that government air strikes had caused widespread death and destruction in Zabadani, and expressed concern that civilians were trapped both there and in the two Shia villages.
Ahrar al-Sham said last week it was holding talks with an Iranian delegation over Zabadani, located in an area of western Syria where Assad, who faces an army manpower shortage, has sought to shore up control.
The source added that ongoing talks were focused on an evacuation of rebel fighters from Zabadani, and an evacuation of civilians from the two villages.
While diplomacy has so far been a total failure in ending the war, there are signs of a new push following Iran’s nuclear deal last month with major powers including both the United States and Russia.
Turkey, a major regional power and opponent of Assad that until now had avoided a direct role in the war, has revamped its strategy in recent weeks to join a campaign against Islamic State. It is pressing for a buffer zone in Syria near its frontier that would be free of Islamic State and controlled by opponents of Assad.
