As Syrian rebels quit Ghouta, Douma stands alone

A second convoy of vehicles are seen as they carry civilians and opposition fighters from the Damascus suburb of Eastern Ghouta arrived in Hama province, Syria on March 24, 2018 [Enes Diyab / Anadolu Agency]

A second convoy of vehicles are seen as they carry civilians and opposition fighters from the Damascus suburb of Eastern Ghouta arrived in Hama province, Syria on March 24, 2018 [Enes Diyab / Anadolu Agency]

A second convoy of vehicles are seen as they carry civilians and opposition fighters from the Damascus suburb of Eastern Ghouta arrived in Hama province, Syria on March 24, 2018 [Enes Diyab / Anadolu Agency]

A kid is seen after a second convoy of vehicles, carry civilians and opposition fighters from the Damascus suburb of Eastern Ghouta arrived in Hama province, Syria on March 24, 2018 [Enes Diyab / Anadolu Agency]

The Syrian army on Saturday paused its bombardment of Douma, the last rebel bastion near Damascus, a war monitor said, as insurgents prepared to leave the rest of their former enclave of eastern Ghouta, according to a report by Reuters.

Buses that will carry thousands of people – fighters along with their families and other civilians – into exile in northwestern Syria began entering the southern part of eastern Ghouta.

It follows the departure of thousands of others on Friday from the town of Harasta in a similar deal for insurgents to depart with light weapons in return for surrendering their territory.

The buses queued at a crossing point before moving into the enclave along a road on the former front lines that had been cleared of barricades, debris and unexploded ordnance. Some captives held by the insurgents were released and state television showed them leaving in a minibus.

About 7,000 people – fighters along with family members and other civilians who do not wish to come back under Assad’s rule – were to leave the towns of Zamalka, Arbin, Ein Terma and Jobar starting on Saturday, rebels and state media said.

They will go to Idlib province in the northwest – the destination for many such “evacuations” after sieges and ground offensives forced numerous rebel enclaves to surrender in the past two years.

It will not mean an end to their experience of war. Syrian military and Russian air raids on Idlib have increased in the past week, killing dozens of people.

A kid is seen after a second convoy of vehicles, carry civilians and opposition fighters from the Damascus suburb of Eastern Ghouta arrived in Hama province, Syria on March 24, 2018 [Enes Diyab / Anadolu Agency]

A wounded patient girl is brought to a hospital with a second convoy of vehicles that carry civilians and opposition fighters from the Damascus suburb of Eastern Ghouta arrived in Hama province, Syria on March 24, 2018 [Enes Diyab / Anadolu Agency]

A second convoy of vehicles are seen as they carry civilians and opposition fighters from the Damascus suburb of Eastern Ghouta arrived in Hama province, Syria on March 24, 2018 [Enes Diyab / Anadolu Agency]

The army was advancing into towns the rebels had retreated from in preparation for their exit, state television said. It broadcast pictures of the massive trenches and other fortifications the rebels were leaving behind.

It means only Douma is left of the opposition’s eastern Ghouta enclave which a month ago the United Nations said was home to 400,000 people and constituted the rebels’ main stronghold near Damascus.

The army offensive to capture it, heralded by one of the heaviest bombardments in the seven-year conflict with warplanes, helicopters and artillery, has killed more than 1,600 people, said the war monitor, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.

Residents and rights groups have accused the government of using weapons that kill indiscriminately – inaccurate barrel bombs dropped from helicopters, chlorine gas and incendiary material that sets raging fires.

Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and his close ally Russia, which has helped his air campaign, have denied using all those weapons and say their offensive was needed to end the rule of Islamist militants over civilians.

A wounded patient is seen on a stretcher ahead of receiving a medical treatment who was brought to a hospital with a second convoy of vehicles that carry civilians and opposition fighters from the Damascus suburb of Eastern Ghouta arrived in Hama province, Syria on March 24, 2018 [Enes Diyab / Anadolu Agency]

A wounded patient is seen on a stretcher ahead of receiving a medical treatment who was brought to a hospital with a second convoy of vehicles that carry civilians and opposition fighters from the Damascus suburb of Eastern Ghouta arrived in Hama province, Syria on March 24, 2018 [Enes Diyab / Anadolu Agency]

A wounded patient baby receives a medical treatment who was brought to a hospital with a second convoy of vehicles that carry civilians and opposition fighters from the Damascus suburb of Eastern Ghouta arrived in Hama province, Syria on March 24, 2018 [Enes Diyab / Anadolu Agency]