Arab League welcomes Syria truce deal

By Khaled Ibrahim

CAIRO

Arab League Secretary-General Ahmed Abul-Gheit on Saturday welcomed a U.S.-Russian announcement of a truce deal in war-torn Syria.

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry, speaking at a joint presser with his Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov, said the truce will commence with the start of the Muslim holiday celebration of Eid al-Adha on Monday.

In a statement released by the Cairo-based league, Abul-Gheit said during a phone call with UN envoy Staffan de Mistura that he “welcomes any cessation of hostilities that eases the suffering of civilians whether in the northern Aleppo province or all across Syria”.

He also voiced hope for reaching “a political settlement that achieves the hopes and aspirations of the Syrian people”.

Kerry has described the truce deal as a “turning point” and voiced hope it would “reduce violence, ease suffering and resume movement towards a negotiated peace and a political transition in Syria”.

Syria has suffered unspeakable losses over the last five years since Bashar al-Assad's government violently suppressed a peaceful protest against his rule, unleashing a downward spiral of violence that killed hundreds of thousands of victims and displaced millions.