Leaders from France, Germany, Russia and Turkey will meet in Istanbul later on Saturday. Their agenda? Syria. They're hoping to build on a ceasefire brokered by Moscow and Ankara last month, as multiple violations of that agreement are being reported. CGTN's Alaa Ebrahim has details.

ALAA EBRAHIM DAMASCUS "Last month, Damascus seemed content after Turkish and Russian reach a deal to create a demilitarized zone in Idlib province north of the country. The deal which was implemented in September created a buffer zone between the Syrian army and rebel groups. Sources in the Syrian government tell CGTN that the deal isn't perfect but it helped achieve a consensus that terrorists should be forced out of Idlib Province. Whether this happens now or in the future, Syrian officials have always said the government will regain control of the whole country including Idlib sooner or later. But the implementation isn't without breaches. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reports four civilians have been killed since the buffer zone was put into force Oct 15th. Three of which were killed by rebel rockets on Aleppo. A second phase of the Turkish- Russian deal targets radical groups for withdrawal, mainly al-Qaida-linked groups like Hayat Tahrir Al-Sham. The group is considered the most powerful rebel group in Idlib Province and said it will not abide by the deal. Turkey needs to persuade the rebels to withdraw from the demilitarized zone but al-Watan newspaper reports their efforts have failed. It remains to be seen whether Turkey will be able to pull off that part of the deal. Alaa Ebrahim, CGTN, Damascus."