Terrorism 'Loopholes' in Syria Threaten Success of Ceasefire

The cessation of hostilities in Syria could be threatened as a result of the loose definition of terrorist entities in the country, Arab Council of Washington, DC Executive Director Dr. Khalil Jahshan told Sputnik on Monday.

WASHINGTON (Sputnik), Leandra Bernstein — At midnight on Saturday, the fighting parties in Syria agreed to a cessation of hostilities, brokered under United Nations auspices by Russia and the United States. 

"We are not optimistic because there are just too many loopholes, we feel, in the ceasing of hostilities agreement itself," Jahshan said of the Syrian ceasefire. "The most inherent weakness in the ceasing of hostilities is the definition of terrorism."

The agreement determined that fighting between all stakeholders in the five-year-conflict would cease, except against the Islamic State, which is also known as Daesh, the Nusra Front as well as other groups and organizations designated by the United Nations as terrorist.

Jahshan said that the definition of terrorism "was left too vague… to give this ceasefire, which is good, a chance of survival."

The Syrian cessation of hostilities deal, agreed to by the UN Security Council resolution 2268, exempts dozens of terrorist groups operating in Syria from a respite in the fighting. Already, two days into the break in hostilities, parties on the ground in Syria have alleged multiple ceasefire violations.