BEIRUT: A total of 135 people were killed in the first week of a fragile truce in Syria in areas covered by the cessation of hostilities agreement, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said on Saturday.

In areas not covered by the cease-fire, which came into force on Feb. 27, 552 people were killed, the Britain-based Observatory that monitors the country’s five-year-old civil war said.

Meanwhile, two Syrian opposition monitoring groups say rebel fighters have seized the Syrian side of a major Syria-Iraq border crossing from the Daesh group.

Fighters from the New Syria Army militia took the Tanaf border crossing Friday night, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights says.

The Local Coordination Committees network reported Saturday that one Daesh fighter was killed in the fighting and several more were injured.

The Daesh group had controlled the crossing, located in the Homs province in southeast Syria, since government forces withdrew in May 2015.

The Observatory says the rebel fighters had crossed into Syria from Jordan, suggesting they are backed by the US.

Separately, one of the main Western-backed Syrian opposition groups has elected a new leader after the term of its former chief ended.

The Turkey-based Syrian National Coalition says longtime member Anas Al-Abda was elected president on Saturday, replacing Khaled Khoja. The coalition said in a statement that three other officials from the group have been named vice presidents.

The coalition was once the main Western-backed opposition group. It is currently part of the Saudi-backed High Negotiations Committee.

The HNC will represent the opposition in indirect peace talks with the Syrian government planned for next week in Geneva.