There are signs the United Nations-brokered cease-fire in Syria is beginning to fray.
Two activist groups reported clashes between Syrian troops and rebel force, near the Turkish border Friday. A number of the fighting was reportedly heavy.
The British-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said the Syrian government deployed tanks to the northwestern village of Khirbel el-Joz before gunfire erupted. Separately, the Local Coordination Committees reported tank movements and heavy gunfire in nearby Khirbet el-Joz.
Sipan Hasan with the Syrian Center for Democracy Support, a Netherlands-based group, says the fighting isn't any accident at the portion of the Syrian army.
"The Syrian regular army is making an attempt to end this case once possible. And they're looking to finish those people," said Hassan. "What we now have heard is the Syrian army is moved to searching for those groups.""
The fighting comes as Syria's opposition forces have called for widespread protests to check the Syrian government's resolve to abide by the truce. Hasan says greater than 1,000,000 individuals are expected to take to the streets as portion of those protests.
The cease-fire went into effect at 6 a.m. local time on Thursday, though rights activists accused the Syrian regime of killing no less than three civilians after the cease-fire deadline passed.
Later Thursday, U.N.-Arab League envoy Kofi Annan warned the U.N. Security Council that Syria had not fully complied with the terms of the peace plan. Still, Annan said he have been encouraged by reports the cease-fire was holding.
Western nations were pushing the protection Council to send two waves of observers to Syria to observe and enforce the cease-fire. A draft resolution demands Syria to offer the observers full and unimpeded freedom of movement around the country. It also demands Syria withdraw troops and heavy weapons from population centers.
Moscow, now and then at odds with other members of the safety council over the wording of resolutions aimed toward Syria, has called for all parties to teach "maximum prudence."
Syrian envoy Bashar Ja'afari Thursday defended President Bashar al-Assad's regime, saying the govt. had ended attacks and expects opposition militias to do a similar. Ja'afari blamed anti-government forces for several violent acts that he said occurred after the cease-fire deadline and said "the instant of truth has come."
U.S. President Barack Obama and French President Nicolas Sarkozy issued a joint statement urging Syria to abide by Annan's plan. But on Friday, Sarkozy doubted the Syrian president's sincerity, telling a French television station he therefore didn't believe the cease-fire would hold.
U.N. chief Ban Ki-moon has said the international community ought to be united whether it is going to maintain Syria from descending into "chaos." Ban said plans were under option to send observers to Syria. Diplomats said the primary U.N. monitors can be dispatched as early as Friday.
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