Syria: De-escalation zones to come into effect midnight May 5

Event

At midnight on Friday, May 5, the “de-escalation zones” agreement reached by Russia, Turkey, and Iran in Astana, Kazakhstan will come into effect. The four zones in Latakia, Aleppo, Hama, and the rebel-dominated Idlib province, are intended to provide safe areas for civilians where all military action by all actors is prohibited. The security of these “de-escalation zones”, which are supposed to be closed to US-led coalition aircraft, are to be enforced by Russian, Turkish, and Iranian forces. According to Russian officials, the zones will not be fully established for another month.

The rebels’ delegation suspended participation in the negotiations on Thursday, May 4, due to discussions over such “de-escalation zones” including rebel held areas that have been bombed by the Syrian regime.  The rebels’ delegation also cited Iran’s participation as a reason for rejecting the agreement, while also claiming that Russia fails to act on its promises made during negotiations. Both the rebels’ delegation and the Syrian regime did not sign the agreement.

Context

Multiple rounds of negotiations to establish a political solution to the Syrian civil war have taken place in Geneva, Switzerland. The recent Russian initiated rounds of peace talks in Astana do not include a US delegation as an active participant.

Syria is engulfed in a complex civil war that started between the Assad government and opposition forces in March 2011. The conflict involves many parties, including the Syrian government, Russian government, Iranian government, Turkish government, a US-led coalition, and numerous armed groups (including the Islamic State) with competing goals.

Advice

Due to extremely poor security conditions, Western governments generally advise against all travel to Syria, with some countries banning all travel to the country.