'Regime of silence' in Syria extends for 48 hours

The Syrian army on Monday said the state of regime of silence near the capital Damascus will be extended for 48 hours.

It is the second time the "regime of silence" truce is being extended in the Eastern Ghouta countryside of Damascus, Xinhua news agency reported.

On Sunday, the army said it has extended the truce for additional 24 hours, just a couple of days after declaring such a system.

The Syrian army announced on Friday that a "regime of silence" state will be observed in hotspots near the capital and the northwestern province of Latakia after midnight.

"In order to uphold the agreed-upon cessation of hostilities system, a state of regime of silence will be observed on Saturday in areas in the Eastern Ghouta east of Damascus and the northern countryside of Latakia," the army said in a statement.

The aim of it, the army continued, is to cut the road before the armed groups, which are trying to continue the state of tension and instability.

Also on Friday, Russia and the US have reportedly agreed to enhance truce in northern Latakia and suburbs of Damascus.

However, the northern city of Aleppo, which has recently seen an escalation of violence, was not included in the regime of silence while reports said Moscow and Washington were discussing ways to include Aleppo into the cease-fire.

--IANS

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