2nd evacuation convoy from Quneitra arrives in Idlib

By Esref Musa and Burak Karacaoglu

IDLIB, Syria (AA) – A second convoy of evacuees from Syria’s southwestern Quneitra province arrived in opposition-held Idlib province late Sunday, in line with an agreement between the Bashar al-Assad regime and armed opposition groups.

The convoy of 47 buses and 21 vehicles carried around 2,592 evacuees, according to an Anadolu Agency reporter in the region.
The evacuees were taken to a temporary refugee center upon their arrival.

So far, some 4,100 people have been evacuated from Quneitra to Idlib.

Under the deal, more convoys are expected to follow from the southwestern province, which is located adjacent to the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights region.

The agreement provides opposition fighters with a safe exit to Idlib in exchange for surrendering their heavy weapons.

A similar deal was implemented recently in Syria’s southwestern Daraa province, according to which regime forces -- along with Russian military police -- were allowed to deploy along the nearby border with Jordan.

Syria has only just begun to emerge from a devastating conflict that began in 2011 when the Assad regime cracked down on demonstrators with unexpected ferocity.

*Ali Murat Alhas contributed to this report from Ankara