The head of Syria's powerful Al-Qaeda branch on Friday urged opponents of President Bashar al-Assad to reject a ceasefire due to begin at midnight and instead intensify attacks on the regime.

"Beware of this trick from the West and America because everyone is pushing you to go back under the thumb of the oppressive regime," Mohammad al-Jolani, the head of Al-Nusra Front, said in an audio message released on Friday.