'Three dead' in eastern Ghouta clashes as shaky Syria ceasefire holds

At least three people have been killed in clashes in eastern Ghouta just hours after the UN Security Council backed a 30-day ceasefire in Syria.

Violence and airstrikes were reported in the Syrian suburb on Saturday night and Sunday morning despite the resolution having passed.

But activists said that Damascus, Syria's capital, and the embattled suburb eastern Ghouta appeared relatively calm.

On Saturday the UN Security Council unanimously backed the ceasefire in order to allow essential humanitarian aid to reach millions of people.

A week's worth of shelling in rebel-held eastern Ghouta had left more than 500 civilians dead and prompted the UN to compare the area to "hell on earth".

The UN passed a 30-day ceasefire resolution. Credit: AP

It has been reported that at least 19 health facilities have been damaged during the frequent bombardment.

Nearly 130 children and 75 women are believed to be among the dead.

"This has been the calmest night since last Sunday," a spokesperson for the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said the day after the resolution passed.

Sunday's shelling killed three people and wounded 27 in several areas in eastern Ghouta.

State media said insurgents breached the truce by firing 15 shells Sunday on government-held areas on the edge of Ghouta.

Dr Sakhr al-Dimashqi, a Ghouta-based surgeon, said: "The shelling today is not as intense as over the past week."

The UN resolution does not include members of so-called Islamic State and al-Qaida-linked fighters.