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Syrian soldiers walk through territory seized from Islamist extremists in the town of Daraya [Xinhua]
The amnesty, which now ends in June 2017, comes as Syrian government forces continue to make grounds against Islamic State and Al Nusra Front militias.
Islamic State and Al Nusra Front fighters are continuously targeted by Syrian and Russian forces since a nationwide ceasefire went into effect following the government recapture of Aleppo in December.
Last week, Syrian rebel groups joined an opposition coalition which attended peace talks in Astana, capital of Kazakhstan. The talks were sponsored by Iran, Russia and Turkey and seen by many as a prelude to wider UN-sponsored peace negotiations to include the US and Arab Gulf states in Geneva.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov hailed the Astana talks as a breakthrough step forward between Assad’s representatives and opposition groups.
UN Special Envoy to Syria Staffan de Mistura, who attended the Astana talks, said he had pushed back the Geneva talks from February 8 to February 20 to give time for talks between the government and rebels to bear fruit.
The BRICS Post with inputs from Agencies
