MOSCOW (Sputnik) — The introduction of the ceasefire regime in Syria provided the local population with the opportunity to resume their normal everyday life, the chair of the UN Human Rights Council's commission of inquiry on Syria said in a statement on Tuesday.
"This [cessation of hostilities] has led to a significant decrease of armed violence incidents in areas where the cessation of hostilities applies. For the first time since the war started, civilians in large parts of the country feel a return to normalcy in their daily lives," Paulo Sergio Pinheiro said.
"As a first step, diplomatic efforts must take place in parallel with provision of humanitarian assistance to those in desperate need. There must be no compromise on this. Too many lives, many of them children and the elderly, have been lost to starvation and lack of the most basic medical care," the statement read.
The commission called on all parties to the conflict to "allow for the sustained and unhindered provision of humanitarian supplies, including food and medication, to besieged and hard-to-reach areas."
On February 22, Russia and the United States reached an agreement on a ceasefire in Syria. The ceasefire came into force on February 27. It does not apply to the Islamic State or the Nusra Front, which are outlawed in a number of countries worldwide including Russia and the United States.
