An anonymous military official said cease-fire went into effect at midnight Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said warplanes stopped flying over Idlib BEIRUT: Opposition activists said airstrikes have stopped in northwestern Syria after a truce went into effect there, seeking to reduce violence in the wake of a three-month government offensive. Syrian state media quoted an unnamed military official as saying the conditional cease-fire went into effect at midnight Thursday. The reports say the rebels will have to retreat 20 kilometers from demilitarized areas around the stronghold agreed to in a cease-fire deal reached last September. The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights says the province of Idlib is witnessing “cautious calm” on Friday as warplanes stopped flying over the province. Ahmad Sheikho of the opposition’s Syrian Civil Defense, also known as White Helmet, says that since midnight “there are no warplanes in the air” but that artillery shelling continued.