A ceasefire deal that will allow the evacuation of tens of thousands of civilians and fighters under Russian guarantees has been reached in the besieged Syrian enclave of eastern Ghouta. The agreement, which was confirmed by the spokesman of the second-largest rebel group in the area, will allow civilians and fighters to either leave for northern Syria or remain in their homes and reconcile with the regime of Bashar al-Assad, with guarantees from Moscow that they will not be prosecuted for opposition activities.

In effect, the deal will displace thousands of civilians to the northern province of Idlib, which is under partial control by al-Qaida-linked militants, as few are likely to trust guarantees by a Russian government whose fighter jets participated in the month-long bombardment of eastern Ghouta.(theguardian)…[+]