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Russia Provides Locations of 6,000 Militants Who've Agreed to the Ceasefire

© REUTERS / Rodi SaidFighters from the Democratic Forces of Syria inspect weapons and ammunition that, according to them, belonged to Islamic State fighters, in al-Shadadi town, in Hasaka province, Syria February 26, 2016
Fighters from the Democratic Forces of Syria inspect weapons and ammunition that, according to them, belonged to Islamic State fighters, in al-Shadadi town, in Hasaka province, Syria February 26, 2016 - Sputnik International
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The chief of the Main Operational Directorate of the General Staff of the Russian Armed Forces said that Russia has provided the US with a list of armed groups exceeding 6,000 people and 74 settlements that have committed to the Syrian ceasefire that took effect hours earlier.

Syrian government forces drive a tank on a road during a military operation against Daesh in the villages of Zarour and Khanaser, in the Aleppo province, on February 26, 2016 - Sputnik International
Stand and Fight: Amid Ceasefire, Syrian Army Refocuses on Taking Down Daesh
MOSCOW (Sputnik) Russia has provided a list of armed groups exceeding 6,000 people and 74 settlements that have committed to the Syrian ceasefire that took effect hours earlier, the chief of the Main Operational Directorate of the General Staff of the Russian Armed Forces said Saturday.

"A list of armed groups totaling 6,111 people who have adhered to the ceasefire, as well as a list of 74 towns and regions with exact geographic coordinates where airstrikes should be excluded, has been communicated to US representatives," Lt. Gen. Sergei Rudskoi told reporters.

Russia and the United States reached an agreement on the ceasefire in Syria on February 22. The ceasefire took effect at midnight on Saturday, Damascus time (22:00 GMT on Friday). The UN Security Council unanimously adopted a resolution endorsing the Russia-US agreement on the cessation of hostilities in Syria on Friday, shortly before the ceasefire came into force.

The cessation of hostilities does not apply to designated terrorist groups operating in Syria, including Daesh and Jabhat al-Nusra (Nusra Front), a group affiliated with al-Qaeda.

The United States is establishing a second reconciliation center in the Jordanian capital of Amman similar to the Russian reconciliation coordination center at Russia’s Hmeymim airbase, the chief of the Main Operational Directorate of the Russian Armed Forces General Staff said.

“A similar center [to the Hmeymim reconciliation center] is being established by our US colleagues in Amman,” Lt. Gen. Sergei Rudskoi told reporters in an address broadcast by the network Rossiya-24.

A working group was formed in the Russian Defense Ministry to maintain state-level military contacts, he added.

“Defense Ministry officials are also working with the Russian delegation in Geneva. A ‘hotline’ was established to interact between centers in Hmeymim, Amman, Moscow, Washington, as well as Geneva,” Rudskoi stressed.

All contact phone numbers and email addresses have been forwarded to US colleagues on February 24, he specified.

The coordination center for reconciliation at the Hmeymim airbase started operations on the same day, the Russian Defense Ministry said earlier.

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