HAMA (Syria) (Sputnik) – Militants of illegal armed groups in the south-west of the Syrian province of Idlib comply with the ceasefire regime and partially withdrew heavy weapons from the demilitarized zone on the border with the province of Hama, Nabil, the commander of the Christian militia of Al-Suqaylabiyah city, told Sputnik.
“There is information that armed terrorist groups fulfill the conditions of the agreement. It is also confirmed by some video and photo materials that they publish. According to our sources, there is a partial [weapons] withdrawal. Turkey confirms this through its media. We can say that this is partially true. But the withdrawal is not full, and there is still time for the full implementation of the agreement before October 15,” Nabil said.
According to the commander, there have been no violations of the ceasefire regime in the area over the past several days.
On Wednesday, the Turkish Defense Ministry said that all heavy weapons had been withdrawn from the newly-formed demilitarized zone in Idlib.
On September 17, Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan agreed to set up a demilitarized zone in Idlib along the contact line of the armed opposition and the government forces by October 15. The withdrawal of heavy weaponry is part of the agreement.
The agreement, in particular, envisaged a speedy withdrawal of heavy weapons by October 10 from the demilitarization zone, which will run along the perimeter of the de-escalation zone to a depth of 15 to 20 kilometers (9 to 12 miles). Russian military police and Turkish forces will be patrolling the demilitarized zone in Idlib along the contact line between the armed opposition and the government troops.
Sourse: sputniknews.com
