Syrian president announces deal with Kurds including truce

Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa announced Sunday an agreement with the chief of the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces, Mazloum Abdi, that includes a ceasefire after government forces advanced in Kurdish-held areas of the north and east.

Details are to be finalised on Monday, he said, adding that the deal was based on "the spirit" of an agreement signed in March. He expressed hope that the deal would be "a good start" for development and reconstruction and "a chance for security and stability" and "that Syria ends its current state of division and moves towards a state of unity and progress".