Syrian army claims victory in Aleppo as last rebels leave

More than 4,000 rebel fighters departed overnight from Wednesday to Thursday, despite difficult winter conditions

A Syrian civilian evacuated from the rebel-besieged Shiite villages of Foua and Kafraya is loaded into a bus on the eastern outskirts of Aleppo on December 22, 2016. The evacuation of the two villagesShow more

Aleppo // The evacuation of rebel-held areas of Aleppo was in its last stages on Thursday, with more than 4,000 opposition fighters leaving since Wednesday night, the Red Cross said.

The Syrian army later announced that the country’s second city had been fully recaptured from rebel fighters, the government’s biggest victory in the nearly six-year civil war.

“The general command of the armed forces announces the return of security to Aleppo after its release from terrorism and terrorists, and the departure of those who stayed there,” the army said.

Mr Al Assad gave credit for the victory to his allies Moscow and Tehran.

“The liberation of Aleppo is not only a victory for Syria but also for those who really contribute to the fight against terrorism, notably Russia and Iran,” the president said.

The evacuation effort began last week but was halted after a day because of renewed fighting. It resumed on Monday but had been hampered by heavy snowfall and freezing temperatures recent days, leaving evacuees waiting in unheated buses for hours.

“Overnight between Wednesday and Thursday, in one of the last stages of the evacuation, more than 4,000 fighters were evacuated in private cars, vans, and pickups from eastern Aleppo,” said Ingy Sedky, the spokeswoman in Syria for the International Committee of the Red Cross.

She said about 34,000 people had left rebel areas of Aleppo under the evacuation plan, which the ICRC is assisting with.

The heavy snowfall that blanketed Aleppo and the surrounding countryside on Wednesday had stopped but was still slowing down the evacuations.

“The bad weather, including heavy snow and wind, and the poor state of vehicles ... mean things are moving much more slowly than expected,” Ms Sedky said on Thursday.

“The evacuation will continue for the entire day and night and most probably tomorrow. Thousands are still expected to be evacuated.”

It was unclear who exactly remained to be evacuated or how many were either fighters or civilians.

The United Nations said it had deployed observers to monitor the final evacuations, under a Security Council resolution adopted on Monday.

Jens Laerke, spokesman for the UN humanitarian agency, said 31 staff had been assigned to monitor at the crossing point at Ramussa, the government-held district of southern Aleppo through which evacuation convoys have been leaving.

“It’s been a very difficult night. The weather is really harsh, and people are leaving in hundreds of private vehicles at different levels of disrepair,” he said.

Rebel forces, who seized control of east Aleppo in 2012, agreed to withdraw from the bastion after a month-long army offensive that drove them from more than 90 per cent of their former territory.

The agreement was brokered by Russia, which launched air strikes in support of the Assad regime last year, and Turkey, which has supported some rebel groups.

As part of the Aleppo evacuation deal, it was agreed some residents would be allowed to leave Foua and Kefraya, two Shiite-majority villages in north-western Syria that are under siege by the rebels.

About 1,000 people have been able to leave the villages in recent days.

Ms Sedky said the Red Cross would “continue to escort hundreds of civilians” from the villages to Aleppo “throughout the day”.

The evacuation of Aleppo’s rebel sector is a pivotal moment in a war that has killed more than 310,000 people and triggered a major humanitarian and refugee crisis. As well as a major strategic gain for Mr Al Assad, the rebel withdrawal has given fresh impetus to international efforts to end the conflict.

Russia, Iran and Turkey agreed this week to guarantee Syria peace talks and backed expanding a ceasefire, laying down their claim as the main power brokers in the war.

Repeated attempts at peace have failed, but UN envoy Staffan de Mistura has said he hoped to convene fresh talks in Geneva in February.

Moscow’s military intervention in support of Mr Al Assad marked a major turning point in the war.

Defence minister Sergei Shoigu said Thursday that the Russian air force had killed 35,000 fighters in Syria since September last year.

Turkey launched its own campaign in Syria in August in support of pro-Ankara rebels, with the aim of pushing back ISIL and Kurdish militia from areas near its border.

Turkish air strikes on Thursday killed at least 47 civilians in the ISIL-held Syrian town of Al Bab, which Turkish forces have been seeking to capture for weeks, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said.

The dead included 14 children and nine women, according to the Britain-based monitoring group, which relies on a network of sources inside Syria.

The raids came a day after 16 Turkish soldiers were killed in ISIL attacks around Al Bab – the country’s biggest loss of the campaign so far.

* Agence France-Presse