Roundup: Week into ceasefire, Damascus enjoys largely tranquil times

A week into the landmark ceasefire in Syria, the capital Damascus was the main city that enjoyed a relative peace without notable breaches.

The truce, which started at midnight last Friday, held up pretty well in Damascus, as no notable breaches were reported, save for some shelling on areas in the eastern countryside of Damascus, where the al-Qaida-linked Nusra Front are located.

The Nusra group as well as the Islamic State (IS) group are both excluded from the truce, as both groups have been designated as terrorist organizations by the UN.

At the first hours of the truce a week ago, several mortar shells slammed into areas inside the capital, without causing casualties. The tranquility was quick to be restored after the mortar attack.

In the middle of the week, sporadic clashes were reported on the eastern outskirts of Damascus, namely on the frontline of al-Marej and Bala towns.

On Wednesday, gunfire was reported in the town of Madaya in the northern countryside of Damascus, without any reported casualties.

Also this week, the bomb squad dismantled an explosive device in the Masaken Barzeh in northern Damascus and in the Mazzeh neighborhood.

With the relative calm in the capital, two aid convoys entered besieged rebel-held areas near Damascus, namely the town of Muadamiyeh and Saqba.

Despite the breaches, the residents of the capital enjoyed the relative peace and thronged the streets and markets during the week and parks on Friday, as it's the weekend in Syria.

The restaurants in al-Rabweh area were jam-packed on Friday, as well as the nearby Tishreen park, reviving the old scene of the capital ahead of the crisis.

In the surrounding of the capital, activists reported the eruption of anti-government protests, akin to what used to happen at the early days of the crisis.

The protests have largely been eclipsed by the raging conflict during the crisis, but the recent truce has pushed the people apparently to return to their "peaceful" means to express their antagonist to the government.

Also, instances of infighting among the rebels were reported in three areas near Damascus, mainly in the areas of Dumair in eastern Damascus in Eastern Ghouta and the Yarmouk Camp south of Damascus.

In other Syrian provinces, the clashes against the Islamic State and the Nusra Front continued amid a progress made by the Kurdish-backed Syria Democratic Forces in northern Syria.

Politically, and during a conference call with Russian President Vladimir Putin, the leaders of the UK, France, Germany and Italy all agreed on Friday that the Syrian cessation of hostilities is a milestone achievement creating favorable conditions for dialogue in Syria.

The leaders noted with satisfaction that the ceasefire has been generally observed and preconditions have been created for the start of the political process in Syria through the establishment of intra-Syrian dialogue under UN auspices, an online Kremlin statement said.

"The leaders supported the roadmap on settlement agreed by the International Syria Support Group (ISSG) and approved by UN Security Council Resolution 2254," the statement said.

Meanwhile, the five leaders expressed their willingness to intensify joint efforts aimed at resolving acute humanitarian issues in the war-torn country, according to the statement.

They also stressed the need that all Syrian conflicting parties should strictly observe the truce, as well as the importance of continuing the uncompromising fight against the Islamic State, the Nusra Front and other terrorist organizations.

The five leaders agreed to actively contribute to the efforts of the ISSG and UN Special Envoy for Syria Staffan de Mistura aimed at putting an end to the year-long bloodshed and violence in Syria, the statement said.

Russia and the United States, as co-chairs of the ISSG, on Feb. 22 signed an agreement establishing ceasefire in Syria, which became effective at midnight of Feb. 26 and was accepted by the Syrian government as well as a range of opposition groups. Endit