Syrian rebels leave last opposition district in Homs
| Publisher | Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty |
| Publication Date | 21 May 2017 |
| Cite as | Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, Syrian rebels leave last opposition district in Homs, 21 May 2017, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/59818d93c.html [accessed 30 May 2023] |
| Disclaimer | This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States. |
Last Updated: May 21, 2017 19:46 GMT
Syrian evacuees from Waer, the last opposition-held district Homs, arrive in the city of Al-Bab in northern Aleppo Province on April 18.
Hundreds of Syrian rebels and their families left the last opposition-held district of Homs on May 21, completing a deal that has brought the city under full government control.
Some 700 fighters and their families, totaling nearly 3,000 people, have left the district of Waer in the past two days on buses in the final phase of the evacuation.
Homs, which was once the center of the uprising against President Bashar al-Assad, was besieged by government forces for four years.
Thousands of rebels and their families have left areas in western Syria in recent months in deals with the government. Assad now controls Syria's main cities.
The opposition has criticized the deals as forced displacement, often after months or years of siege and bombardment by government forces.
Evacuees have mostly left for rebel-controlled Idlib Province or for Jarablus, a town along Syria's border with Turkey.
Based on reporting by Reuters and AFP
Link to original story on RFE/RL website
