UNITED NATIONS (AFP) -- UN Secretary General Kofi Annan Monday welcomed the cease-fire signed over the weekend in Burundi's 10-year civil war, which has claimed more than 300,000 lives.

"He commends President Domitien Ndayizeye and (rebel leader Pierre) Nkurunziza for their commitment to peace and reconciliation in Burundi and calls on them to ensure full implementation of the protocol in accordance with the agreed timetable," Annan's spokesman said in a statement.

The deal fine-tunes an agreement sealed October 8, when the two men agreed to share political and military power and called for an end to hostilities.