Syrian regime agrees to Eastern Ghouta ceasefire after strikes

Syria's regime agreed on Tuesday to a ceasefire in rebel-held Eastern Ghouta, following days of heavy bombardment, the United Nations envoy to the war-ravaged country said. 

"Russia has proposed and the government has accepted a ceasefire in Eastern Ghouta," the United Nations Special Envoy for Syria, Staffan de Mistura told reporters in Geneva, where an eighth round of peace talks aimed at ending the Syrian conflict was getting under way.

De Mistura said he learned of the proposal from a Russian envoy during a meeting of ambassadors from Security Council permanent representatives—Britain, France, China, Russia and the United States—earlier on Tuesday. 

Eastern Ghouta, located to the east of Damascus, is one of the last remaining rebel strongholds in Syria, and is part of one of four "de-escalation zones" in place across the country in an attempt to reduce violence.

In recent weeks, violence has increased considerably, with regime air strikes and artillery fire across the region, and rebel fire from the area into Damascus.

Over the past two days, more than 40 civilians were killed in the strikes, according to the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR).

SOHR added that another three people were killed on Tuesday in regime air strikes on the town of Hammuriyeh in Eastern Ghouta.

The town was hit with air strikes on Tuesday morning, according to what the monitor said.

Regime delegation to attend Geneva talks

A Syrian regime delegation will arrive in Geneva on Wednesday, a day later than expected, to attend peace talks being held there this week, Syrian state news agency SANA said.

The delegation had delayed its planned departure for the talks, which begin on Tuesday, because of the opposition's insistence that Syrian regime leader Bashar al Assad step down.

De Mistura, said the regime and opposition would have a chance to negotiate directly for the first time, but it was not clear if they would choose to do so.

"We are going to offer it. We will see if this takes place. But we will be offering that," he said after meeting the opposition delegation.

The United Nations Special Envoy for Syria, has received assurances that the Syrian regime delegation will attend the talks, UN spokeswoman Alessandra Vellucci told a Geneva news briefing.

"At least we know that they are coming," she said, declining to give details on who transmitted the message from Damascus.

Aid delivery 

The UN said on Tuesday that a convoy carrying food and medical aid entered Eastern Ghouta. 

The UN's Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) tweeted that the joint convoy had "entered Nashabieh in besieged East Ghouta to deliver food, health and nutrition items for 7,200 people in need."

OCHA spokeswoman Linda Tom said that the convoy included "nutrition items and medications to treat malnutrition."

"And the health items include several medications for trauma treatments but not surgical items," she said.

"Our teams are not part of any medical evacuation," she added.

TRT World's Alican Ayanlar reports.

The siege has caused food and medical shortages since it began in 2013.

Humanitarian agencies have sounded the alarm on hundreds of cases of malnutrition in the area and consistently pushed for better aid access.

But deliveries have continued to be rare, despite implementation of the "de-escalation zone."

Prior to Tuesday, the most recent aid delivery to the area was on November 12 to the town of Douma.