International mediator Kofi Annan has said that the UN Security Council's decision to deploy a further 300 ceasefire monitors in Syria marked a "pivotal moment for the stabilisation of the country".
In a statement issued in Geneva, he called on both Syrian government forces and opposition fighters to put down their weapons and work with the unarmed observers to consolidate the fragile ceasefire that took effect 10 days ago.
"The government in particular must desist from the use of heavy weapons and, as it has committed, withdraw such weapons and armed units from population centres and implement fully its commitments under the six-point plan," Mr Annan said, referring to his plan accepted by both sides to end 13 months of violence.
The UN authorised the deployment of a 300-strong ceasefire monitoring mission yesterday, but the US warned it may not allow a renewal of the mission saying its "patience was exhausted."
In the restive province of Homs meanwhile, the first dispatch of UN observers arrived to monitor a shaky ceasefire, as two civilians were said to be among at least 11 people killed in Syria on Saturday, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights
Reports from Syria cannot be independently verified as state authorities have barred international journalists and rights groups.
Under UN resolution 2043, the unarmed military observers will be sent for an initial period of 90 days if UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon decides it is safe for them to go.
Russia's UN ambassador Vitaly Churkin, whose country played a leading role in drawing up the resolution, told the council the measure was of "fundamental importance to push forward the process of the peaceful settlement in Syria."
The US however warned it may not allow the renewal of mission after the first three months, while urging greater international pressure on the government of President Bashar al-Assad.
Susan Rice, the US ambassador to the United Nations, told AFP that Mr Ban must make a "careful judgment" about conditions in Syria before sending 300 unarmed monitors there.
"Our patience is exhausted. No one should assume that the US will agree to renew this mission after 90 days," Ms Rice told the Security Council after it authorised the full mission.
Several western envoys stressed the dangers of sending unarmed monitors to Syria, where UN officials say well over 9,000 people have been killed in the uprising of the past 13 months.
Ahead of the UN vote, state-media reported authorities released 30 people detained for their alleged role in Syria's anti-regime uprising, but who have "no blood on their hands."
The move takes to nearly 4,000 the number of people the authorities have released since November, SANA reported.
