Shaky truce takes effect across Syria

Beirut: A fragile cease-fire brokered by the UN took hold in Syria yesterday with regime forces apparently halting widespread attacks on the opposition, but there were reports of scattered violence and the government defied demands by international envoy Kofi Annan to pull troops back to barracks.

A civilian and a Syrian soldier were reported killed after the 6 am cease-fire deadline, but there was no sign of the normally intense shelling, rocket attacks and sniper fire that have become routine.

If the truce holds, it would be the first time the regime has observed an internationally brokered ceasefire since Bashar Al Assad's regime launched a brutal crackdown 13 months ago on mass protests calling for his ouster.

However, troops intensified searches at checkpoints, tightening controls ahead of possible large-scale protests today called by the opposition and meant to test the regime's commitment to the Annan plan.

Broken promises

There was deep scepticism that the regime would halt its fire for long, given that Al Assad has broken promises in the past. Also, the regime said on Wednesday, on the eve of the truce deadline, that it reserves the right to respond to any aggression, potentially a pretext for breaking the truce.

Annan's plan calls for the deployment of international observers and talks on a political transition once a truce is in place. The initiative has broad international support, including from Al Assad allies Russia, China and Iran, and is widely seen as the last chance for diplomacy to end the violence.

Bassma Kodmani, spokeswoman of the opposition Syrian National Council, said the truce has largely been observed since 6 am yesterday, but that a heavy security presence, including checkpoints and snipers remain.

"There is no evidence of any significant withdrawal," she told reporters in Geneva. "The real test for us today is if people can go and demonstrate peacefully," she added. "This is the real reality check."

The group's leader, Burhan Ghalioun, urged Syrians to demonstrate peacefully today, the day of weekly protests since the uprising began. "Tomorrow, like every Friday, the Syrian people are called to demonstrate even more and put the regime in front of its responsibilities — put the international community in front of its responsibilities," he said.

Briefing Security Council

Annan was to brief the UN Security Council by video conference from Geneva yesterday afternoon.

Syria's state-run news agency, Sana, said a roadside bomb exploded near a bus carrying soldiers in the northern city of Aleppo, killing one officer.

And the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, an activist group, said a man was shot dead in the central town of Safsafiyeh in Hama province.

Troops opened also fire in several areas in the northern province of Idlib, but there were no reports of casualties, activist Fadi Al Yassin said. Al Yassin said troops were taking strict measures at checkpoints, asking people to leave the car and then searching them thoroughly. He said lines of cars are stretching for hundreds of metres at checkpoints.

Al Assad's promise to be tested today

Beirut: A major test for the regime will come today. Since the outbreak of the protests in March 2011, thousands have taken to the streets every week after Friday noon prayers in the mosques.

Analysts said the apparent halt in government attacks suggests Al Assad's allies are pressuring him for the first time, after shielding him from international condemnation in the past. Annan has visited Russia, Iran and China to get the broadest possible backing for the plan.

The West and its allies doubt the sincerity of the regime's pledges to comply with the truce plan, which calls on the Syrian government to allow peaceful protests.

Threat to regime

A prolonged cease-fire could threaten the regime by encouraging large numbers of protesters to flood the streets, as they did at the start of the revolt against the four-decade rule of the Al Assad clan. The government met those demonstrations with a harsh crackdown, and more than 10,000 people have died since, according to rights groups.

On Tuesday, the regime had ignored a deadline for withdrawing troops from population centres, prompting renewed demands by Annan that forces return to their barracks. Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu also demanded yesterday that the Syrian troops withdraw, saying that "keeping the cities under pressure is not meaningful."

Protest hubs

However, Al Assad apparently is unwilling to ease control over opposition areas for fear of widespread anti-government protests. The White House cautioned on Wednesday that the Al Assad regime has reneged on promises to stop violence in the past.

"What is important to remember is that we judge the [Al] Assad's regime by its actions and not by their promises, because their promises have proven so frequently in the past to be empty," White House spokesman Jay Carney told reporters in Washington.

Western powers have pinned their hopes on Annan's plan, in part because they are running out of options.