The Syrian army announced the country’s second city Aleppo has been fully recaptured from rebel fighters, the government’s biggest victory in the nearly six-year civil war.
The last group of rebels and their families holed up in a small enclave in eastern Aleppo were evacuated on Thursday, under a deal that gives the army and its allies full control of the ancient city after years of fighting.
“Thanks to the blood of our martyrs and the sacrifices of our valiant armed forces as well as allied forces 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 in a statement.
It represents a momentous victory for President Bashar al-Assad and a crushing defeat for Syria’s opposition.
The ancient city of Aleppo had been divided into rebel and government parts since 2012.
Ahmed Qorra Ali, an official with the rebel group Ahrar al-Sham, confirmed “the last convoy has left the rebel-controlled area”.
Earlier, the Red Cross said more than 4,000 fighters had left rebel-held areas of the city in the “last stages” of the evacuation.
Rebel forces agreed to withdraw from the bastion after a month-long army offensive that drove them from more than 90 percent of their former territory.
The evacuation agreement was brokered by Russia, which launched air strikes in support of Assad’s government last year, and Turkey, which has supported some rebel groups.
The Syrian government’s recapture of Aleppo is a major turning point in the Syrian civil war with potentially powerful political repercussions.
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