As government buses leave from Ghouta- Reuters
Yup, it's a 4 post day today! May not be one tomorrow- But for today? We've got news & interviews. I'll relink all the days posts at the bottom
- Syrian rebels withdrew in busloads from a town in eastern Ghouta on Thursday and handed it over to the army, the first such surrender since one of the fiercest campaigns of the seven-year war began more than a month ago.
The Ahrar al-Sham group’s decision to accept the army’s terms and abandon the town of Harasta puts the government on course for its biggest victory over rebels since the battle of Aleppo in 2016.
And in another part of the same region, the controlling rebel group, Failaq al-Rahman, said a ceasefire had been agreed, to start within hours at midnight local time (2200 GMT), to allow a “final negotiating session” to take place.
After dark fell on Thursday, around 30 buses carrying rebel fighters and their families left Harasta. Syrian state media said the buses carried 1,580 people, including 413 rebel fighters given safe passage to northwestern Syria.
A military media unit run by Syrian President Bashar al-Assad’s ally Hezbollah said 1,500 fighters and 6,000 family members had agreed to leave.
An army officer interviewed on state television said rebels
who had not yet negotiated similar deals to evacuate from other towns in
eastern Ghouta must quit or die.
“Death is coming for you if you do not surrender,” he said.
The army’s assault on (terrorist filled) eastern Ghouta , the last major rebel
bastion near the capital, has been one of the most intense in Syria’s
seven-year-old war, killing more than 1,500 people in a relentless
bombardment with warplanes, rockets and shells.
Before
boarding the buses out of Harasta, a small group were shown on
television in the fading light kneeling in a line for Islam’s sunset
prayer - perhaps the last they would perform in their hometown. Children
ran among the adults waiting to board.
Between 18,000 and 20,000 people were expected to stay in Harasta under government rule, a military source said.
PROVEN TACTICS
The eastern Ghouta campaign has seen
Syria and its Russian allies use the tactics that proved successful in
other parts of the country since Moscow joined the war in 2015: lay
siege to an area, bombard it, launch a ground assault and finally offer
safe passage out to rebels who agree to leave with their families.
The
government’s control of Harasta leaves eastern Ghouta’s rebels in
control only of the town of Douma — under the control of Jaish al-Islam —
and another pocket that includes the towns of Jobar, Ein Terma, Arbin
and Zamalka — under the control of Failaq al-Rahman.
State
television reported that more than 6,000 people (human shields held by terrorists) had fled Douma since
Wednesday, crossing over into government-held territory.
SURRENDER
On Sunday, Assad drove himself to a newly
captured battlefront in eastern Ghouta, a demonstration of his
seemingly unassailable position in a war that has been going his way
since Russia sent its air force to help him in 2015.
Flashback to Sunday- Ghouta: Assad Visits/ Terrorists Negotiate with UN/Deadline for Terrorist Exit has Passed
The
deal to surrender Harasta began on Thursday with a prisoner swap. In an
interview with state television, a Syrian soldier freed by rebels wept
and thanked God and the army for his release.
The Russian Defence Ministry website showed what it said was
live footage from the al-Wafideen crossing point from Douma into
government areas. Over a period of several minutes, it showed dozens of
people in small groups coming around a corner and trekking along the
dirt road past armed soldiers.
Some bore bundles of possessions, others carried small children or pushed prams.
Douma is the most populous area in eastern Ghouta, and for more than a week
it has been entirely surrounded by the government. Jaish al-Islam has
said it is determined to fight on. However, the Observatory said people
leaving the area were doing so under an agreement between the group and
Russia.
FEROCITY
The Syrian government and Russia accuse
rebels in eastern Ghouta of preventing civilians from leaving to use
them as human shields, which the rebels deny. Moscow and Damascus say
their campaign is needed to end rebel shelling of the capital and other
nearby areas. On Tuesday, a rocket struck a marketplace in a
government-held town, killing dozens.
The Harasta rebels will be taken to Idlib province in the northwest,
which has become the main sanctuary for insurgents who agree to quit
territory under deals with the government.
Enjoy the news and especially two great interviews!