By Timour Azhari, Phil Stewart, Jonathan Spicer and Suleiman Al-Khalidi DAMASCUS (Reuters) -The United States encouraged its Syrian Kurdish allies to reach Monday's landmark deal with the Islamist-led government in Damascus,

A ceasefire between Syria's Kurds and the government in Damascus ends hostilities and grants first-time rights to the marginalized minority. "The agreement between Damascus and the Kurdish Syrian Democratic Forces is a major step towards reunifying Syria,