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| World powers agree Syria ceasefire, says John Kerry | World powers agree Syria ceasefire, says John Kerry |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| World powers meeting on Syria have agreed to seek a nationwide "cessation of hostilities" within a week, US Secretary of State John Kerry has said. | |
| But he said the halt would not apply to the fight with jihadist groups Islamic State (IS) and al-Nusra Front. | |
| He also said the powers had agreed to immediately accelerate and expand the delivery of humanitarian aid. | |
| The announcement comes as the Syrian army, backed by Russian air strikes, advances in Aleppo province. | |
| The move threatens to encircle tens of thousands of civilians in rebel-held parts of the major city of Aleppo. | |
| Mr Kerry admitted the ceasefire plan was "ambitious" and said the real test would be whether the parties honoured the commitments. | |
| "What we have here are words on paper, what we need to see in the next few days are actions on the ground," he said. | |
| A UN task force will be set up to ensure humanitarian access is granted to all sides, Mr Kerry added. | |
| He made the announcement alongside his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov and the UN special envoy for Syria, Staffan de Mistura. | |
| Mr Lavrov said there were "reasons to hope we have done a great job today". | |
| At the press conference Mr Kerry again suggested that Russian strikes were targeting opposition forces, rather than terrorists as Moscow says. | |
| But both men agreed that peace talks involving the Syrian government and rebels should resume as soon as possible. |