February 24, 2018

The U.N. Security Council on Saturday unanimously called for a 30-day cease-fire in Syria, with Russia agreeing to the temporary hiatus only after forcing two days of delays that critics said allowed ally Syrian President Bashar al-Assad to pursue a renewed bombing campaign blamed for hundreds of recent deaths in a rebel-controlled area.

The nationwide truce would begin “without delay,” a victory for the United States and other nations that resisted Russian efforts to push back the start or soften the terms.

It came after intense negotiations to persuade Russia not to use its veto power in the Security Council. Moscow had blocked 11 previous Syria resolutions. The United States and others accused Moscow of protecting the Assad government and its bombing campaign in the Damascus suburb of Eastern Ghouta while allowing a humanitarian disaster to continue.

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https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/un-security-council-approves-30-day-humanitarian-cease-fire-in-syria/2018/02/24/2090d301-7627-45e0-9b1d-7a854e34d57b_story.html?hpid=hp_hp-top-table-main_unsyria-224pm%3Ahomepage%2Fstory&utm_term=.1957adc20f48