Assad regime agrees to conditional truce in Idlib: state media

The Bashar al-Assad regime in Syria announced Thursday a conditional cease-fire in Idlib, which was declared a de-escalation zone by Turkey and Russia to prohibit acts of aggression.

The regime forces, who intensified attacks in the region soon after the Sochi agreement was signed in September 2018 in Russia, declared a conditional truce in the Idlib de-escalation zone that will be implemented as of tonight, during the 13th round of Syria peace talks in Kazakh capital Nur-Sultan, the Syrian regime's official news agency SANA reported, quoting a military source.

"The agreement stipulates terrorists to retreat nearly 20 km in depth from the line of the de-escalation zone of Idlib and to withdraw the heavy and medium weapons," SANA quoted the source.

Military opponents have yet to comment on the reports of cease-fire.

Turkey and Russia agreed last September to turn Idlib into a de-escalation zone where acts of aggression are expressly prohibited.

The Syrian regime and its allies, however, have consistently broken the terms of the cease-fire, launching frequent attacks inside the de-escalation zone.

The de-escalation zone is currently inhabited by about 4 million civilians, including hundreds of thousands of people displaced by the regime forces from their cities and towns throughout the war-weary country over recent years.

Syria has been locked in a vicious civil war since early 2011, when the Bashar al-Assad regime cracked down on pro-democracy protests with unexpected ferocity.

Since then, hundreds of thousands of people have been killed and more than 10 million others displaced, according to UN officials.