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Summary An al-Qaida-inspired group has rejected cease-fire proposed by UN to Syria.
The envoy, Lakhdar Brahimi, said the government in Damascus and some rebel leaders agreed to a four-day truce during the Muslim Eid al-Adha holiday, which starts Friday.In a statement posted on militant websites Wednesday, Jabhat al-Nusra, rejected the cease-fire, calling it a filthy game and saying it has no faith that President Bashar Assads regime would respect the truce.The Syrian government says its studying the proposal.So far all diplomatic efforts have failed to stop Syrias violence, which activists say has killed more than 34,000 people.Both sides have agreed to earlier cease-fires only to thwart them with more attacksThe U.N.-Arab League envoy to Syria said the government in Damascus and some rebel leaders have agreed to a temporary cease-fire during a four-day Muslim holiday that starts Friday.The Syrian government, however, did not confirm Wednesdays announcement by Lakhdar Brahimi, saying only that it was still studying the envoys proposal.Brahimi told reporters in Cairo that President Bashar Assads government has agreed to a truce for the Eid al-Adha holiday. Brahimi said Damascus will issue a statement on accepting the cease-fire later today or tomorrow.The announcement came as government forces intensified airstrikes on a rebel-held area near the besieged city of Aleppo. The fighting in Syria has killed more than 34,000 people since March last year, according to activists.Brahimi did not elaborate on how the truce would be monitored. The envoy has met with Assad in Damascus on Sunday as part of his push for a cease-fire between rebels and government forces. He also held talks last week with opposition groups inside and outside Syria and earlier received promises but not a commitment from them to honor the cease-fire.In Damascus, Foreign Ministry spokesman Jihad Makdessi stressed Wednesday that the cessation of military operations during Eid al-Adha is still being studied by the General Command of the Army and the Syrian armed forces, and that the final position on this matter will be issued on Thursday.
