Syria has "promised" the United Nations that it will stop fighting tomorrow, and we'd believe them if, oh yeah, they weren't Syria.  Remember when they "promised" to stop shelling the city of Homs and let the Red Cross in, only to block the Red Cross from entering (and possibly massacre oppostion forces who were left behind)?  Or when they "promised" to let the Red Cross in again only to stop them from entering the Baba Amr neighborhood? If you do, you'll forgive us for taking  Syria's "promise" to the UN and Kofi Annan to stop fighting before the Annan's 6 a.m. Thursday deadline with heavy dose of skepticism. 

"A decision has been taken to stop these missions as of the morning of Thursday, April 12, 2012," an unnamed Syrian official said in the Associated Press' report. "Our armed forces are ready to repulse any aggression carried out by the armed terrorist groups against civilians or troops."  And perhaps there's something lost in translation, but doesn't the latter part sound a little like the beginning of a broken promise? 

Want to add to this story? Let us know in comments or send an email to the author at aabadsantos at theatlantic dot com. You can share ideas for stories on the Open Wire.
Alexander Abad-Santos