Syrian rebels strike deal with Assad and walk out of major city of Homs

Around 2,000 rebels and their families will leave the besieged Waer district of Homs city

Samuel Osborne
Wednesday 09 December 2015 08:06 GMT
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Homs was once dubbed the 'capital of the revolution' and was the scene of some of the first protests against President Bashar al-Assad in 2011
Homs was once dubbed the 'capital of the revolution' and was the scene of some of the first protests against President Bashar al-Assad in 2011

Syrian rebels have begun evacuating the last district they hold in the city of Homs under a ceasefire deal with the government, a monitoring group has said.

Homs, in central Syria, was once dubbed the "capital of the revolution" and was the scene of some of the first protests against President Bashar al-Assad in 2011.

Under the UN-backed deal, the entire city will return to government control.

Rami Abdel Rahman, head of the UK based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, said as a result three buses carrying around 150 civilians had left the district and more were to follow.

Some 2,000 rebels and their families will leave the besieged Waer district of Homs city.

Mr Rahman said about 750 people, including civilians, were awaiting evacuation to the northwestern province of Idlib.

Idlib province is held by the Army of Conquest rebel alliance, which includes Al-Qaeda affiliate Al-Nusra Front, which could send some of its forces to escort the buses.

As many as 250,000 people have died in the Syrian Civil War since March 2011, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported in October.

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