Some 35 Armed Groups Side With Syrian Government Forces in Idlib - Russian MoD

Thirty-five illegal militant units have confirmed their readiness to switch to the side of the government troops in the Idlib de-escalation zone in eastern Syria, the Russian Defense Ministry's Center for Syrian Reconciliation said Monday.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) — The ministry said that "35 units confirmed their readiness to side with the government troops" following the talks with the leaders of the formations.

The agreement on the de-escalation zone in Idlib was reached in the mid-September. The creation of the Idlib safe zone has been especially crucial due to the fact that around 9,000 terrorists of the Jabhat Fateh al-Sham (formerly known as al-Nusra Front) terrorist group were attempting to take control over the province, according to the Russian Defense Ministry. 

Previously, the safe zones were established in southern Syria, Eastern Ghouta, and the Homs province. ICRC Director of Operations Dominik Stillhart told Sputnik the zones helped lower the level of violence in the war-ravaged country.

The agreement on establishing four Syrian safe zones was reached during the talks on Syrian reconciliation in Astana in May. Besides, three ceasefire guarantor states — Russia, Turkey, and Iran — with help from Jordan and the United States as observers, tried to coordinate a whole range of specifics of the establishment of four de-escalation zones in Syria.