Turkey calls for Syria truce during Eid al-Adha

Turkey on Friday called for Syria's regime to immediately stop deadly aerial bombing of rebel targets and for the two sides to observe a truce ahead of the Eid al-Adha Muslim holiday next week. "It is particularly important that the Syrian regime immediately stop and without conditions, the recent attacks against the population with planes and helicopters," Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu told reporters in Ankara. "In the name of the Turkish republic, I am officially calling on all combatant parties in Syria to respect a temporary ceasefire during the Eid al-Adha holiday and if possible, a longer timeframe." The Turkish chief diplomat was echoing a call for a truce made by U.N. peace envoy Lakhdar Brahimi as Syrian fighter jets blasted a rebel-held town on Thursday, killing at least 49 people, including 23 children. The four-day Eid al-Adha Muslim holiday will start on October 26 this year.