9th, 10th convoys reach Hama from Syria’s E. Ghouta

By Burak Karacaoglu and Esref Musa

IDLIB, Syria (AA) - Ninth and tenth convoys carrying medical patients, injured people and opposition fighters from Syria’s besieged Eastern Ghouta district reached Syria’s west-central Hama province on Friday.

The evacuations come as part of a Russia-brokered deal between Syria's Assad regime and armed opposition groups.

Some evacuees are headed for Idlib, which is held by opposition forces and anti-regime groups; others will be accommodated at temporary shelters -- and in local mosques and schools -- in western Aleppo.

Last week, the first series of convoys evacuated people from Eastern Ghouta’s town of Harasta. These were followed by additional evacuations from the towns of Arbin, Zamalka and Ain Tarma.

To date, roughly 37,000 people -- including many opposition fighters and their families -- have been evacuated from the besieged Damascus suburb.

On Feb. 24, the UN Security Council unanimously adopted Resolution 2401, which called for a ceasefire in Syria -- especially in Eastern Ghouta -- to allow the delivery of humanitarian aid.

Despite the ceasefire resolution, however, the regime and its allies early this month launched a major ground offensive -- backed by Russia -- aimed at capturing opposition-held parts of the district.

Since Feb. 19, at least 1,433 people have reportedly been killed in attacks by the regime and its allies in Eastern Ghouta, according to local civil-defense sources.

Home to some 400,000 residents, the district has remained under a crippling regime siege for the last five years that has prevented the delivery of badly-needed humanitarian supplies.