US-Russian Ceasefire Deal Goes Into Effect In Southwest Syria, by Tyler Durden

The most imporant development coming out of the G-20 meeting was the ceasefire in Syria negotiated by Russia and the United States. So far it’s holding, but don’t underestimate the Deep State and military’s ability to sabotage such agreements; they’ve done it before. From Tyler Durden at zerohedge.com:

A U.S.-Russian brokered ceasefire in southwest Syria was holding several hours after it took effect according to Reuters, the latest international attempt to restore peace in the six-year Syrian war. The truce, which took effect across southwest Syria on Sunday at noon Damascus time (09:00 GMT), extends to Syrian government forces and rebel groups in the provinces of Deraa, Quneitra, and Sweida where western-backed rebels control swathes of territory and form a center of the insurgency south of the capital Damascus.

Last week, shortly after the first meeting between Trump and Putin, the United States, Russia and Jordan announced they had reached a ceasefire and “de-escalation agreement” with the aim of paving the way for a robust truce to deliver aid to war-torn areas and end hostilities; it will be enforced by the three countries’ militaries.

 “The situation is relatively calm,” said Suhaib al-Ruhail, a spokesman for the Alwiyat al-Furqan rebel group in the Quneitra area. Another rebel official, in Deraa city, said there had been no significant fighting. It was quiet on the main Manshiya front near the border with Jordan, which he said had been the site of some of the heaviest army bombing in recent weeks. A witness in Deraa said he had not seen warplanes in the sky or heard any fighting since noon.

Separately, a Syrian official indicated that Damascus approved of the ceasefire deal, describing the government’s silence over it as a “sign of satisfaction”.

Free Syrian Army fighter near an anti-air craft machine gun in Quneitra, Syria July 8, 2017.

So far so good, however this won’t be the first time that a Syrian ceasefire agreement was implemented, only to crumble shortly after, especially with the tide of Syria’s proxy war turning in Assad’s favor over the past year: with the help of Russian air power and Iranian-backed militias, Assad’s government has put rebels on the back foot over the last year. Furthermore, the wide array of mostly Sunni rebels which include jihadist factions and other groups supported by Turkey, the United States and Gulf monarchies, have suffered a potentially terminal drop in support following the Qatar diplomatic scandal, which has made it virtually impossible for either Saudi Arabia or Qatar to continue providing logistical and financial support to the Syrian rebel groups.

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