Syrian official says crucial water supply will soon be repaired

Maintenance workers arrived in a rebel-held valley near Damascus on Friday to fix the water facility there, signalling an end to the violent standoff that has dried out the capital for weeks and threatened a fragile ceasefire, activists and the Syrian government said.

For days, negotiations stalled, failing to restore the water flow to the capitaland to end a government offensive there to uproot rebels in control of the area for years.

The UN says the capital has suffered a water shortage that has affected nearly 5.5 million residents. The fighting has trapped nearly 100,000 residents of the opposition-held valley.

• Damascus residents plagued by water shortage
• Syria accuses Israel of firing rockets at Damascus

Aceasefirethat went into effect on Dec. 30 was threatened by the ongoing violence. Rebel groups threatened to withdraw from planned talks because of the violations.

By late Friday afternoon, however, the opposition Wadi Barada Media Centre posted pictures of maintenance equipment arriving in the water-rich Barada Valley. The local governor told Syrian state TV a deal had been reached, and water would soon flow back into Damascus. He said it could resume as early as Saturday.

River runs through rebel-held valley

In Ankara, Turkish Presidential Spokesman Ibrahim Kalin said the talks scheduled to take place in Astana, Kazakhstan, will take place on time on Jan. 23. Turkey, which supports the Syrian opposition, brokered the ceasefire with Russia, an ally of the Syrian government.

The ceasefire "in spite of all violations by the [Syrian]regime, seems to be holding," Kalin told reporters. "Now the representatives of the opposition and [the] regime will come together and discuss. The general principles to which we subscribe are ending the fight, keeping Syria's territorial integrity and clearing Syria of terrorists."

Shortly thereafter, reports emerged that shelling and fighting had resumed in the area. It was not clear if the maintenance crew had withdrawn. But with darkness setting in, it was unlikely maintenance would take place.

Earlier on Friday, the Syrian army and the opposition monitoring group Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said government forces had made new territorial gains in the Barada Valley, capturing the village of Basima after heavy airstrikes and shelling.

The opposition has long controlled the Barada Valley northwest of Damascus through which the river of the same name flows to the capital. Recapturing the valley would mark a new government victory, despite the ceasefire.

Previous talks to restore the Barada Valley water flow and impose a ceasefire there faltered, according to rebel groups, because the government demanded fighters surrender and evacuate the area. Other government offensives have succeeded in evacuating other parts of Syria and areas near the capital after a tight siege and a punishing bombing campaign.

Both sides point fingers over water crisis

The government and the opposition have traded blamed for the recent standoff.

The Wadi Barada Media Centre said government and Russian aircraft had bombed the Ain el-Fijeh water processing facility, puncturing its fuel depots and contaminating the water stream. Damascus officials denied attacking the facility and said they were forced to shut off its water supply after opposition forces poured gasoline into the river.

Underscoring the negotiation grind, the two sides interpreted Friday's agreement differently.

Fuad Abu Hattab, an exiled resident of Barada Valley who is part of the opposition group following the talks, said the agreement would not force anyone to leave the valley nor does it mean Syrian soldiers are taking control of the area. The maintenance equipment would enter the area accompanied by civil police to protect it, he said.

But briefing reporters, local governor Alaa Ibrahim said fighters would hand in their weapons and that those who refused would be move to Idlib province the opposition stronghold in the north.

The Observatory, which relies on a network of activists on the ground, also said only policemen would protect the station and that rebel fighters would remain.