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DAMASCUS, SYRIA (1:00 P.M.) – At least 2000 people have left the last insurgent-held district in the central city of Homs as per an agreement held earlier with the Syrian government.

The batch – which includes some 150 militants – is the first of many to leave Al-Waer district in the coming weeks.

A Russian-brokered agreement has been reached last week between rebel forces and the Syrian government in which militants agreed to surrender their last stronghold, and eventually be evacuated to Homs northern countryside, Idlib and Jarabulus near the Turkish borders.

According to sources, some 20,000 people – including 300 militants – have shown desire to be relocated to one of the three agreed-upon areas. This number is expected to rise to 30,000 as the implementation of the agreement began; some 10,000 people chose to stay after having their status settled by the Syrian authorities.

In return, the siege imposed by the government forces will be immediately lifted, aid convoys will be also be granted an easy access into the district.

Advertisements</s>Media playback is unsupported on your device Media caption Syrian rebels and their families are leaving their last remaining enclave in Homs

Syrian rebels and their families are leaving their last remaining enclave in Homs, a city once dubbed "the capital of the revolution".

Buses have begun transporting people out of al-Wair district, under a Russian-backed evacuation deal.

Al-Wair is home to an estimated 75,000 people and has been under siege by government forces since late 2013.

About 1,500 people will leave for the Aleppo countryside on Saturday, Homs Governor Talal Barazi has said.

The opposition Homs Media Centre says up to 15,000 people could leave in the coming weeks, Reuters news agency reports.

The evacuation is part of a deal reached between community leaders and the government in December 2015. Hundreds of rebels have previously left al-Wair under its terms, but implementation of the agreement had stalled in recent months.

Evacuees will be bussed out of Homs to Jarablus, an area in northern Syria held by rebels backed by Turkey, according to UK-based group the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.

Image copyright AFP Image caption Russian forces are on the ground to supervise the evacuation

The Syrian government says such "reconciliation" deals, which have been agreed in several rebel-held areas, are key to ending the six-year civil war. Opposition fighters say that they have been coerced into such agreements by brutal sieges and bombardments.

Homs became a key battleground of the Syrian uprising after residents embraced the call to overthrow President Bashar al-Assad in 2011 and drove security forces out of much of the city the following year.

Media playback is unsupported on your device Media caption Al-Wair district in Homs has been besieged by government forces for nearly three years

That prompted the government to begin a two-year siege that left whole areas destroyed and eventually forced rebels to withdraw from the Old City in 2014.

Al-Wair, on the western outskirts, is the last rebel-held district.</s>Syrian rebels and their families are leaving their last remaining stronghold in the city of Homs, under a Russian-backed evacuation deal.

 

 Buses began transporting people out of the Al-Wair district on March 18.

 

 Homs Governor Talal Barazi said he expected 1,500 people, including at least 400 rebels, to depart on March 18 for opposition-held areas northeast of Aleppo.

 

 Between 10,000 and 15,000 rebels and civilians would evacuate in batches over the coming weeks under the agreement.

 

 Homs was the early center of the 2011 popular uprising against President Bashar al-Assad. Government forces have recaptured all but the Al-Wair district in the city.

 

 Al-Wair is home to an estimated 75,000 people and has been under siege by government forces since late 2013.

Based on reporting by Reuters and AP</s>BEIRUT: Rebel fighters and their families began leaving their last bastion in the Syrian city of Homs on Saturday, state media and a Reuters witness said, under an evacuation deal with the government that is expected to be the largest of its kind.

The first two buses carrying rebels and their families left al-Waer district in the morning, heading for other rebel-held areas in northern Syria. Homs governor Talal Barazi told Reuters 400 to 500 fighters would evacuate on Saturday, along with their family members.

Under the agreement, more than 12,000 people would leave in batches over the coming weeks, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights war monitoring group.</s>HOMS, Syria/BEIRUT: Rebels and their families began leaving their last bastion in the Syrian city of Homs on Saturday, state media and a Reuters witness said, under a Russian-backed deal with the government expected to be among the largest evacuations of its kind.

The agreement underlines Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's upper hand in the war, as more rebel fighters opt to leave areas they have defended for years in deals that amount to negotiated withdrawals to other parts of the country.

Several buses drove out of the al-Waer district in Homs, which was an early centre of the popular uprising against Assad.

Between 10,000 and 15,000 rebels and civilians would evacuate in batches over the coming weeks under the deal, according to opposition activists in al-Waer and a war monitor.

Homs governor Talal Barazi told Reuters that he expected 1,500 people, including at least 400 fighters, to depart on Saturday for rebel-held areas northeast of Aleppo, and that most of al-Waer's residents would stay.

"The preparations and the reality on the ground indicate that things will go well," Barazi said.

The Syrian government has described such deals as a "workable model" that brings the country closer to peace after six years of conflict. But the opposition decries them as a tactic of forcibly displacing people who oppose Assad after years of bombardment and siege.

Along with the Syrian Arab Red Crescent (SARC), Russian and Syrian forces were overseeing the evacuation, which would take about six weeks, Barazi said.

He said there was communication with other rebel-held areas north of Homs city to reach similar deals, including the towns of al-Rastan and Talbiseh.

"We are optimistic that the full exit of armed (fighters) from this district will pave the way for other reconciliations and settlements," he said.

The government has increasingly tried to press besieged rebel areas to surrender and accept what it calls reconciliation agreements.

In an interview with Chinese TV station Phoenix last week, Assad said deals brokered locally with rebels were "the real political solutions". He added that he had not expected anything from Geneva, where U.N.-led peace talks ended this month with no breakthrough.

Broadcasting live from the al-Waer departure area, Syrian state television spoke to a Russian colonel, who said via an interpreter that security would soon return to the district.

"This agreement was reached only under the patronage of the Russian side ... and it will be implemented with Russian guarantees," he said.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a Britain-based war monitor, said the buses would go to the Jarablus area held by Turkey-backed rebels in the northern Aleppo countryside.

Once completed, it would mark the biggest evacuation during the war out of one Syrian district, which is home to about 40,000 civilians and more than 2,500 fighters, the monitoring group said.

"It's because there is zero trust in Assad's government. That's why the numbers are high," said the head of the Homs Media Center, run by opposition activists. "For years, it has besieged us...and bombed people's homes."

Many did not want to stay out of fear of arrest, and around 15,000 people had signed up to evacuate so far, he said.

"People are going to live in tents, in refugee camps," the activist said, adding that he also planned to leave in the coming weeks. "They are willing to leave their homes, their land, towards the unknown."

Dozens of buses stood at a crossing in the morning waiting to leave al-Waer, accompanied by SARC ambulances, a Reuters witness said.

Police officers searched people before the buses drove out, the Homs police chief told Syrian state television.

In the coming weeks, evacuees could be shuttled to other rebel-held areas in northern Syria, including the insurgent stronghold of Idlib province, state TV said.

Under the agreement, fighters could stay in al-Waer if they hand over their weapons and settle their affairs with the government, it said.

State-owned al-Ikhbariya TV cited the Homs governor as saying that 20 buses had left so far and that rebels carried their small arms out with them.

The government would start returning its services to the district with the departure of the last batch of rebels, Barazi said. Allegations of an evacuation of al-Waer's residents were "devoid of truth", the channel quoted Barazi as saying.

The deal follows others that were never fully implemented between the government and rebel groups in al-Waer, which has been pounded by air strikes in recent weeks.

A few hundred rebels from the district have previously been allowed safe passage to Idlib in the northwest.

Rebels and civilians have poured into Idlib at an accelerating rate over the last year, bussed out of other parts of western Syria that the government and allied forces recaptured from rebels.

Rebel groups have been on the back foot in Syria, following Russia's intervention into the war on Assad's side, bringing its air power to bear in support of his army and its Iranian and Shi'ite militia allies.

The wide array of mostly Sunni rebel factions includes some jihadists as well as some groups supported by the United States, Turkey and Gulf monarchies.</s>REBELS and their families began leaving their last bastion in the Syrian city of Homs on Saturday, state media and a Reuters witness said, under a Russian-backed deal with the government expected to be among the largest evacuations of its kind.

The agreement underlines Syrian President Bashar al-Assad’s upper hand in the war, as more rebel fighters opt to leave areas they have defended for years in deals that amount to negotiated withdrawals to other parts of the country.

Buses drove out of the al-Waer district in Homs, which was an early centre of the popular uprising against Assad.

Between 10,000 and 15,000 rebels and civilians would evacuate in batches over the coming weeks under the deal, according to opposition activists in al-Waer and a war monitor.

Homs governor Talal Barazi told Reuters that he expected 1,500 people, including at least 400 fighters, to depart on Saturday for rebel-held areas northeast of Aleppo, and that most of al-Waer’s residents would stay.

“The preparations and the reality on the ground indicate that things will go well,” Barazi said.

The Syrian government has described such deals as a “workable model” that brings the country closer to peace after six years of conflict. But the opposition decries them as a tactic of forcibly displacing people who oppose Assad after years of bombardment and siege.

Along with the Syrian Arab Red Crescent (SARC), Russian and Syrian forces were overseeing the evacuation, which would take about six weeks, Barazi said.

“We are optimistic that the full exit of armed (fighters) from this district will pave the way for other reconciliations and settlements,” Barazi added.

“There is ongoing communication with” other rebel-held areas north of Homs city to reach similar deals, including the towns of al-Rastan and Talbiseh, he said.

The government has increasingly tried to press besieged rebel areas to surrender and accept what it calls reconciliation agreements.

In an interview with Chinese TV station Phoenix last week, Assad said deals brokered locally with rebels were “the real political solutions”. He added that he had not expected anything from Geneva, where U.N.-led peace talks ended this month with no breakthrough.

Broadcasting live from the al-Waer departure area, Syrian state television spoke to a Russian colonel, who said via an interpreter that security would soon return to the district.</s>BEIRUT, March 18 (Reuters) - Rebel fighters and their families began leaving their last bastion in the Syrian city of Homs on Saturday, state media and a Reuters witness said, under an evacuation deal with the government expected to be among the largest of its kind.

The first few buses carrying rebels and their families drove out of al-Waer district in the morning, heading for rebel-held areas northeast of Aleppo city.

Homs governor Talal Barazi told Reuters around 1,500 people would depart for the Aleppo countryside on Saturday, including at least 400 fighters.

Russian and Syrian forces were overseeing the evacuation, and the full departure of rebels from al-Waer would take about six weeks, he said.

"The preparations and the reality on the ground indicate that things will go well," Barazi said.

President Bashar al-Assad's government has increasingly tried to press besieged rebel areas to surrender and accept what it calls reconciliation agreements that involve fighters departing for northern Syria.

The Syrian government describes such deals as a good way of bringing the country closer to peace after six years of conflict. But the opposition decries them as a tactic of forcibly displacing people who oppose Assad after years of bombardment and siege.

Under the al-Waer deal, between 10,000 and 15,000 people would evacuate in batches over the coming weeks, according to a war monitor and the opposition Homs Media Center.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a Britain-based monitoring group, said the buses would go to the Jarablus area in the north, held by Turkey-backed rebels.

Once completed, it would mark the biggest evacuation during the war out of one Syrian district, which is home to about 40,000 civilians and more than 2,500 fighters, the monitoring group said.

The deal follows other agreements that were never fully implemented between the government and rebel groups in al-Waer, which has been pounded by air strikes in recent weeks.</s>Buses began transporting Syrian rebels and their families Saturday from al-Waer, the last opposition-held neighborhood in the central city of Homs.

Their departure is part of a Russia-backed deal signed earlier this month.

The fighters and their families are being taken to the northern rebel-held town of Jarablus on the border with Turkey.

Officials say the exodus will take several weeks.

Thousands of civilians are also expected to leave Homs rather than risk conscription or arrest by Syrian security forces.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights estimates 12,000 will leave under the agreement, including 2,500 rebels.

The al-Waer neighborhood of Homs is home to some 75,000 people.</s>Syrian rebels and their families began retreating from the outskirts of Homs, the last remaining opposition-held stronghold in central Syria, after a Russian-brokered evacuation deal was signed earlier this week.

The first buses carrying rebels and their families departed from the al-Waer neighborhood in western Homs early on Saturday, state-run SANA news agency reported.

Talal al-Barazi, Homs’ governor, told the media outlet that the first group of evacuees includes over 1,500 people who will be transported to the northeastern edge of Aleppo province.

The evacuation operation is being overseen by Syrian and Russian military police units, al-Barazi later told Reuters, adding that all rebels from al-Waer are due to depart within around six weeks.

“The preparations and the reality on the ground indicate that things will go well,” the governor stressed. “We are optimistic that the full exit of armed [fighters] from this district will pave the way for other reconciliations and settlements,” he added.

Government forces have been fighting to retake the al-Waer neighborhood, home to some 75,000 people, since 2013.

After the Arab Spring broke out in 2011, the city of Homs saw massive riots against President Bashar Assad, which gradually turned violent, as peaceful demonstrations led to the rise of an armed insurgency.

Once the first batch of rebels has left the area, food and aid supplies are expected to arrive in the troubled neighborhood, al-Barrazi told AP. Earlier this week, he that said rebels who laid down their weapons and decided to stay in al-Waer could be eligible for government amnesty, as declared earlier.

On Friday, the Russian Reconciliation Center said negotiations between the Syrian military and rebel commanders are underway in Homs, Damascus, and Hama, as well as other locations. Once Syria’s second-largest city, Aleppo was finally completely liberated last year when rebels evacuated after a ceasefire was declared.

As the Syrian military continues their offensive against Islamic State (IS, formerly ISIS/ISIL), Damascus has intensified its efforts to persuade some of the rebel groups to surrender and sign reconciliation agreements.

Speaking to Chinese TV station Phoenix last week, President Assad said ceasefire deals negotiated with local rebel leaders were “the real political solutions” that could lead to a lasting peace in war-torn Syria.</s>Gunmen carrying their weapons and some family members leave the al-Waer neighborhood in Homs, Syria, on Saturday, March 18, 2017, bound for a town on the Turkish border.

HOMS, Syria — Scores of Syrian opposition fighters and their families began leaving the last rebel-held neighborhood in the central city of Homs on Saturday as part of a Russian-backed evacuation deal signed earlier this week.

By sunset, 344 fighters and their families had left the city — once a center of protest during the 2011 uprising — completing the evacuation for the day. They were bound for a town on the Turkish border after the latest in a series of local agreements in which insurgents have relocated to the rebel-held north after months or years under siege in the country's major cities.

Green government buses ferried the fighters, many carrying assault rifles, and their families from the northern al-Waer neighborhood to Homs' western entrance, where they disembarked and had some of their bags searched under the supervision of Syrian and Russian military police. Three fighters arrived in wheelchairs.

The men, women and children, most carrying their belongings in suitcases and plastic bags, boarded white busses taking them to the northern rebel-held town of Jarablous on the Turkish border. The evacuees were assisted by Syrian Arab Red Crescent members as they loaded their belongings onto the busses.

The al-Waer neighborhood is home to about 75,000 people and has been under a government siege since 2013, triggering shortages of medicine, and occasionally of food. The evacuation is the third phase of an agreement reached last year that saw hundreds of fighters and their families leave the area.

Homs Governor Talal Barrazi said around 1,500 fighters are expected to leave al-Waer, with only their personal rifles, over the next six to eight weeks.

Once the first batch has left, food and basic aid will enter the neighborhood, Barrazi said. He had said earlier this week that fighters who decide to stay in al-Waer can benefit from a government amnesty issued earlier.

An official at the governor's office said later Saturday that 344 fighters and about 1,050 civilians were headed to Jarablous aboard 35 buses. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to the media.

Some opposition activists have criticized the agreement, saying it aims to displace 12,000 al-Waer residents, including 2,500 fighters. The opposition's Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights called the evacuees "internally displaced" people.

Al-Barrazi denied statements that said al-Waer residents are being forced to leave their homes, adding that thousands will stay on and many departing because of violence will return in the future.

Maher Kayyal, the head of the Syrian Arab Red Crescent's operations in Homs, said they were informed of three medical emergency cases, adding that the number might rise to six. Ten ambulances were available at the scene.

"There are no difficulties so far as all parties respect the agreement," he said earlier in the day.

Once the evacuation is completed, the government will be in full control of Homs — Syria's third largest — for the first time in years.

In the early days of the uprising, the city saw huge, peaceful demonstrations against the Assad family's four-decade rule. Those and other protests were met with a fierce government crackdown that led to the rise of an armed insurgency. At one point, the rebels controlled much of the city, but government forces gradually regained control.

The civil war, which entered its seventh year earlier this month, has killed more than 400,000 people and displaced more than half the country's population.
Around 1,500–2,000 people leave al-Waer district of Homs today for their preferred destination of either Northern Homs Governorate, Idlib Governorate or Turkish Army positions in Northern Aleppo Governorate. Up to 15,000 to 20,000 people including armed militants, their families and supporters will leave the besieged district in the coming weeks with the rest of the population reconciling and receiving aid.