Destruction in Syria (archive)
Destruction in Syria (archive)Reuters

The Syrian army announced on Monday evening it would extend a nationwide ceasefire for another 72 hours starting Tuesday, Reuters reported.

The military high command said in a statement reported by state media that "a regime of calm will be extended for a period of 72 hours from one o'clock on July 12."

The Syrian government uses the term "regime of calm" to denote a temporary ceasefire.

The ceasefire was originally announced last Wednesday in honor of the holiday of Eid al-Fitr, which marks the conclusion of the month of Ramadan.

Previous ceasefires have excluded the two groups and, in fact, Al-Nusra has in the past called to intensify the attacks against the Syrian regime during the ceasefire.

The Syrian army and the Russian military, which backs Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad, have periodically announced a temporary local truces in areas of intense fighting. However, air strikes and fighting have often continued in spite of the declarations.

Just as attempts to implement ceasefires in Syria have repeatedly failed, so have diplomatic efforts to end the five-year civil war that has killed more than 280,000 people and forced millions from their homes.