A 48-hour truce began early Wednesday between pro-government forces and rebel groups in three Syrian towns, Hezbollah-run Al-Manar television reported.
The truce involves the rebel-held city of Zabadani on the outskirts of Damascus, and the towns of Kefraya and al-Fouaa on the outskirts of Idlib in the north.
The ceasefire began at 6 a.m. Wednesday.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a London-based monitoring group, reported that negotiations were ongoing between “Iranian delegations and Hezbollah on one hand and the local Zabadani fighters and fighters of the factions in the other hand.”
These involve two key issues, the group said — providing buses to evacuate Ahrar Al-Sham rebels from Zabadani, and allowing food aid into Kefraya and al-Fouaa, which have been besieged by rebel groups.
Meanwhile, Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif arrived in the Lebanese capital, Beirut, where he met with senior figures including the leader of Hezbollah, the Hezbollah media relations office said.
He is also expected to visit Syria on his tour, Lebanon’s official news agency said.
Iran props up both the Lebanese Shia militia Hezbollah and the government of President Bashar al-Assad in Syria.
