MOSCOW, January 9. /TASS/. A ceasefire came into effect in the Syrian Idlib de-escalation zone at 14:00 Moscow time on Thursday in line with agreements with the Turkish side, Major General Yuri Borenkov, chief of the Russian Center for Reconciliation of the Opposing Parties in Syria, told reporters on Thursday.

"In accordance with the agreements with the Turkish side, the ceasefire was imposed in the Idlib de-escalation zone from 14:00 [Moscow time] on January 9, 2010," the general said.

According to Borenkov, ceasefire violations have continued in the Idlib de-escalation zone in the past 24 hours, with 16 shelling episodes reported.

"Militants from illegal armed units shelled the settlement of Baragiti in Aleppo province, the settlements of al-Areim, Kalaat-Marza, Ardash-Dag, Saraf in Latakia province, Al Tah, Jardanaz, Maqanis al-Duwairy, Tell-Kalba, Sukkoria, Barsa and Halban in Idlib province, as well as Huaiz and al-Haruka in Hama province," he went on to say. The general urged the commanders of the illegal armed units to abandon armed provocations and join the path of a peaceful settlement of the situation.

Borenkov said Russian army police continued patrolling along four routes in the provinces of al-Hasakah and Aleppo. Army planes have carried out an air patrol along one route.

Officers from the reconciliation center have carried out in the past 24 hours a humanitarian action in the settlement of Mesmia, Daraa province, in which 250 food sets worth overall 1.213 tonnes were distributed among the locals. Medics from the Russian Defense Ministry have provided health services to 236 Syrians in two settlements of Aleppo and al-Hasakah provinces.

The Russian reconciliation center continues to fulfill the tasks assigned to them after the completion of the military campaign in Syria. They regularly travel around the country's liberated areas to assess the humanitarian situation. The main efforts of the Russian military are now focused on aiding the refugees who are returning back to their homes and evacuating civilians from the war-torn country’s de-escalation zones.