Syria agrees to halt Aleppo raids

U.N. envoy to Syria Staffan de Mistura says Damascus is prepared to suspend its aerial bombardment of Aleppo for six weeks for a trial ceasefire, writes the BBC. De Mistura said the Syrian pledge offered a glimmer of hope although it is unclear when it would take effect.

The opposition Syrian National Council says the government will be judged by actions rather than words. Government forces have been engaged in heavy fighting as they try to cut a crucial rebel supply route. More than 100 soldiers and rebels were reported to have been killed on Tuesday as the army captured several villages north of the city.

De Mistura has been working since October to negotiate what are called "local freezes" in the Syrian fighting that would start with Aleppo. During a recent visit to the country, he held a long meeting with Syrian leader Bashar al-Assad, during which the Syrian president apparently indicated a willingness to halt all aerial bombing and artillery shelling of Aleppo for the six-week period.

De Mistura said he would return to Syria as soon as possible with the aim of announcing a freeze in the fighting in the northern city, during which opposition forces would also be expected to suspend their mortar and rocket fire.

Aleppo is at the forefront of clashes between pro-government forces and a range of insurgents, including Islamist brigades, al Qaeda's hardline Syria wing, Nusra Front, and Western-backed units, writes Reuters. The Syrian army, backed by allied militia, has captured several villages near Aleppo in battles aimed at encircling the northern city and cutting off insurgent supply lines, a monitoring group said.

The Western-backed opposition Syrian National Coalition said it awaited a detailed proposal from de Mistura.

"The Assad regime's compliance with any such proposal will be judged by actions, not words," said the coalition's special representative to the United Nations, Najib Ghadbian. "And thus far, his actions have been only brutality and terror."

More than 210,000 people have died in the Syrian conflict, which will enter its fifth year next month. Peaceful protests against Assad in March 2011 degenerated into an armed insurgency following a fierce security crackdown.