Turkey Hosts Summit to Seek Solutions to End War in Syria

Ankara, which has long backed rebels seeking to overthrow President Bashar al-Assad, and Moscow, Assad’s principal foreign ally, brokered a deal last month to create a demilitarized zone in the northwest Idlib region.

Idlib and adjacent areas are the last stronghold of the rebels, who rose up against Assad in 2011. The area is home to an estimated 3 million people, more than half of whom have already fled other areas as government forces advanced.

“Russia and Turkey have negotiated an agreement that must be strictly implemented. Assurances were made on this point… We will all be extremely vigilant to ensure that these commitments are met and that the ceasefire is stable and sustainable,” French President Emmanuel Macron told reporters.

“We are counting on Russia to exert a very clear pressure on the (Syrian) regime which very clearly owes it its survival.”

Shelling in Idlib killed at least seven civilians on Friday, the largest one-day loss of life there since Russian air strikes stopped in mid-August, a war monitor said.