LATAKIA (Sputnik) — The number of the wounded and killed on Syria's front lines decreased markedly last week; the head of Latakia's military hospital reports that 50 percent fewer patients had been admitted since the beginning of the national reconciliation process last month.
"Over the past week, the number of the wounded delivered to the hospital decreased significantly, with regard to what was previously witnessed. It is possible to say that we are having a break, It has been the first week in four years, when you can sigh with relief. The number of the received wounded has decreased by 50 percent," Gen. Badia Ismail Atrash told reporters.
Zuhir Mundhir, the surgeon at the hospital, confirmed that the doctors had much less work than they were used to, and expressed hope that the ceasefire would be further observed.
According to UN estimates, the conflict in Syria has cost the lives of over 470,000 people, while almost two million have been wounded.
On February 22, Russia and the United States reached an agreement on a ceasefire in Syria, which took effect at midnight on February 27. The ceasefire does not apply to terrorist organizations, such as Islamic State, which has been blacklisted by countries around the world, including Russia and the United States.