Syrian government minister says Damascus needs more details on UN envoy's truce proposal
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}FILE - In this Sept. 11, 2013 file photo, Syrian Minister of National Reconciliation Ali Haidar speaks during an interview with The Associated Press in Damascus, Syria on Wednesday, Sept. 11, 2013. Haidar said Monday, Nov. 17, 204 in an interview with AP that Damascus has agreed "in principle" to the U.N. envoy Staffan de Mistura's call for local cease-fires to try to ease the worst fighting in the country's civil war, but that the government needs more details before it can make a final decision. De Mistura has called for an incremental truce in the northern city of Aleppo as a first step toward a wider peace. (AP Photo, File) (The Associated Press)
A high-ranking Syrian official says Damascus has agreed "in principle" to the U.N. envoy's call for local cease-fires to try to ease the worst fighting in the country's civil war, but that the government needs more details before it can make a final decision.
Syrian Minister of National Reconciliation Ali Haidar says U.N. Syria envoy Staffan de Mistura presented officials in Damascus last week with "a headline, not with any comprehensive proposal" to implement small-scale, local truces.
Haidar also told The Associated Press on Monday that de Mistura "has to make sure that the armed groups on the ground and their backers are ready to accept this initiative."
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}De Mistura has called for an incremental truce in the northern city of Aleppo as a first step toward a wider peace.