Third convoy sets out from Syria’s Daraa for Idlib

By Burak Karacaoglu and Esref Musa

DARAA, Syria

A third convoy carrying opposition fighters and civilians set out from Syria’s southwestern Daraa province on Sunday en route to opposition-held parts of Idlib in the country’s north.

The 24-bus convoy is carrying some 900 passengers, according to an Anadolu Agency correspondent based in the region.

In recent days, at least 2,400 people have been evacuated from Daraa to Idlib and Aleppo’s western countryside.

Last month, the Syrian regime -- with Russian air support -- launched a major military operation in Daraa, allowing it and its allies to establish control over most of Syria’s border with Jordan.

The fighting led to a major displacement crisis, with an estimated 350,000 civilians fleeing Daraa towards areas near the border.

Following peace talks last year in Kazakh capital Astana, Daraa was designated a “de-escalation zone” in which acts of aggression are expressly prohibited.

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.