More than 360 civilians were killed during the first month of an unprecedented ceasefire in Syria, the lowest monthly toll for four years, a monitoring group said on Sunday.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights told AFP that 174 civilians, including 41 children, had died since February 27 in areas where the ceasefire had come into force.
The truce does not include territory where militants like ISIS or Al-Qaeda’s local affiliate are present.
The Observatory said that in militant-held areas, 189 civilians had died over the past month.
The total of 363 dead represented a major drop from the previous month, when more than 1,100 civilians, among them 234 children, were killed.
And it was the lowest number of civilian deaths since November 2011 – just eight months after the conflict erupted – when 296 civilians lost their lives.
“The difference is huge. This is a very positive development,” Observatory head Rami Abdel Rahman told AFP.
Syria’s conflict has left more than 270,000 people – among them nearly 80,000 civilians – dead since it erupted in March 2011 with anti-government protests.
The ceasefire deal, brokered by the United States and Russia, has brought relative calm to swathes of the war-ravaged country.
But fighting has broken out among rival groups and with militant factions.
According to Observatory head Rami Abdel Rahman, 122 rebel fighters have been killed since the deal came into effect.
A total of 637 government and allied fighters also lost their lives.
More than 739 ISIS militants and another 247 hardline Islamist or militant fighters died in the same period.

Civilian deaths drop to four-year low after Syria truce: monitor

Syrian children walk past heavily damaged buildings in the rebel-held town of Douma, on the eastern edges of the capital Damascus on February 27, 2016, on the first day of the landmark ceasefire agreement (AFP)
AFP | Beirut
Sunday 27 March 2016
Last Update: Wednesday, 20 May 2020 KSA 09:46 - GMT 06:46
DAY | WEEK |
-
8177 Views Full moon to align directly above Kaaba in Mecca on Jan. 28
-
7923 Views Coronavirus: Dubai restaurants offer discounts for vaccinated diners
-
4383 Views Loud explosion heard in Saudi Arabia's capital Riyadh
-
1886 Views Iran executes second wrestler months after executing champion wrestler Navid Afkari
-
1872 Views Saudi Arabia in talks to provide COVID-19 vaccines to low income countries: Minister
-
1855 Views Coronavirus: Saudi Arabia to get AstraZeneca shots in about a week from India
-
23712 Views Coronavirus: Dubai temporarily postpones Pfizer vaccine campaign amid global shortage
-
19193 Views Saudi Arabia’s PIF to invest 3 trillion riyals over next 10 years: Crown Prince
-
10999 Views Coronavirus: Dubai orders hospitals to cancel surgeries amid surge in COVID-19 cases
-
9665 Views The American University of Beirut’s battle for survival
-
8309 Views Coronavirus: Dubai suspends live entertainment permits as COVID-19 cases surge
-
8233 Views Coronavirus: Dubai's latest COVID-19 rules for weddings, restaurants, gyms, concerts
SHOW MORE