Syrian truce agreed 'in principle'

The Syrian government has agreed “in principle” to a UN envoy’s call for local ceasefires to try to ease the worst fighting in the country’s civil war but needs more details before it can make a final decision, an official said.

The comments from minister of national reconciliation Ali Haidar come a week after United Nations envoy Staffan de Mistura formally presented his idea to President Bashar Assad, who said it was “worth studying”.