Updated | Syria ceasefire holds after initial clashes

A nationwide ceasefire in Syria, brokered by Russia and Turkey which back opposing sides in the conflict, appeared to hold early on Friday after a shaky start during the night in the latest attempt to end nearly six years of bloodshed.

The ceasefire got off to a shaky start after midnight on Friday local time (11:00pm CET on Thursday), with monitors and a rebel official reporting clashes between insurgents and government forces along the provincial boundary between Idlib and Hama, and isolated incidents of gunfire further south less than two hours after the truce began. Warring sides appeared to have stopped firing in many other areas, however.

Russian President Vladimir Putin, a key ally of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, announced the ceasefire on Thursday after forging the agreement with Turkey, a longtime backer of the opposition.

Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov said the United States could join the peace process once President-elect Donald Trump takes office on 20 January. He also wanted Egypt to join, together with Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Iraq, Jordan and the United Nations, according to Reuters news agency.

A number of rebel groups have signed the agreement, Russia's Defence Ministry said. Several rebel officials acknowledged the deal, and a spokesman for the Free Syrian Army (FSA), a loose alliance of insurgent groups, said it would abide by the truce.

Syria's civil war, which began when a peaceful uprising descended into violence in 2011, has resulted in more than 300,000 deaths and displaced over 11 million people, half its pre-war population.

The ceasefire was the first major international diplomatic initiative in the Middle East in decades not to involve the United States.