Evacuations Now Resume After Buses Set Ablaze In Aleppo

First Posted: Dec 19, 2016 02:57 AM EST
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In eastern Aleppo, evacuations of civilians and rebels from the eastern part of the city finally resumed after hours of delay due to a number of buses set on fire.

The first "limited evacuations" from eastern Aleppo, as well as the towns of Kefraya and Foua, resumed after a few hours, as thousands of people are still awaiting to be evacuated. Robert Mardini of the International Committee of the Red Cross told CNN that five buses and one ambulance left the area shortly after midnight, in an operation that he hoped will proceed smoothly.

Thousands are still waiting to leave the desperate conditions of the city. In fact, the United Nations Security Council was said to have agreed for a compromise that will allow the U.N. to monitor the operations after Russia rejected the French-drafted plan to send officials to East Aleppo. Initial efforts to evacuate the last of the rebel-held areas collapsed on Friday, in a move that BBC News noted to have left civilians stranded at various points without access to food or shelter.

The delay was also noted to have left thousands in limbo as the interruptions left them in bombed-out buildings in subfreezing temperatures. Still, resistance to the deal was expected, especially considering that it requires the cooperation of opposing parties that have been at war for over five years.

Being taken from one part of Syria to another still has people expecting that refugees are being moved from one war zone to another, as Idlib -- where the rescued civilians are sent -- is said to be the next target of the regime, making the evacuations an effective way to move rebels to a single containable zone.

The United Nations Security Council is set to meet on Monday to vote on France's proposal regarding the redeployment of staff to monitor and report on civilian evacuations, as well as to provide "immediate and unconditional" access to humanitarian aid and protection.

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