Syria ceasefire comes into effect

A nationwide ceasefire in Syria brokered by the United States and Russia came into effect at 7 p.m. (1600 GMT) on Monday, the second attempt this year by Washington and Moscow to halt the five-year-long civil war. The Syrian army said a seven-day "regime of calm" would be applied across Syria, and it reserved the right to respond using all forms of firepower to any violation by "armed groups". Rebel groups fighting to topple President Bashar al-Assad have yet to publicly declare whether they wil