Syria rebels agree Azaz ceasefire

Two Syrian rebel groups in the town of Azaz
have agreed a ceasefire.
The Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (Isis), linked
to al-Qaeda, seized the northern town on
Wednesday from the larger Western-backed
Free Syrian Army.
The fighting between the two groups has raised
fears of a possible war within a war.
The BBC's Paul Wood, on the Syrian border
with Turkey, says the two sides have agreed to
exchange prisoners and hand back property.
It is unclear if the ceasefire will have an
impact on clashes between the groups
elsewhere in the country, he says.
Analysts say there is more chance that the US
and other Western powers may arm the Free
Syrian Army if it shows a distinct separation
from the Islamists.
Meanwhile, Syria's Deputy Prime Minister
Qadri Jamil says the civil war has reached
stalemate, with neither government forces nor
the rebels strong enough to win.
He told the UK's Guardian newspaper that at
proposed peace talks in Geneva, Damascus
would call for a ceasefire with the armed
opposition.
Mr Jamil told the Guardian that the Syrian
economy had suffered catastrophic losses in
the civil war that began in early 2011.
More than 100,000 people have died in the
conflict, according to the UN, and millions
have fled the country or been made homeless.
No outright winner?
"Neither the armed opposition nor the regime
is capable of defeating the other side," he said.
"This zero balance of forces will not change
for a while."
Mr Jamil - a former communist whose party
took part in demonstrations against the
government at the beginning of the uprising -
insisted he was speaking for the government.
The BBC's Jim Muir in neighbouring Lebanon
says Mr Jamil's comments are bound to be
dismissed by the Syrian opposition, which is
deeply sceptical about talk of reform and
democracy from government sources.