Syrian government, opposition forces agree to truce

Syria’s warring factions have agreed to a cease fire brokered by Russia and Turkey. It will go into effect at midnight local time. If the truce holds, the groups will meet in Kazakhstan for peace talks to end the six-year war that has torn the country apart. A spokesman for the main moderate Syrian opposition groups said the talks will be based on a 2012 declaration that called for a transitional government in preparation for President Bashar al-Assad to step aside. But it’s not clear whether Assad and his Russia backers will agree to those terms. It’s also not clear whether the cease-fire will last, since it doesn’t include the main Kurdish militia. Turkey considers the group a terrorist organization. Russian President Vladimir Putin announced he had ordered the Russian military to scale back its operations in Syria, but Moscow plans to maintain its presence at an air base and naval facility, providing ongoing support for government forces.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.