A number of notables from the city of Daraya in the Damascus countryside informed residents of the city that the date of their return was approaching, after a number of meetings with officials in the Reconciliations Ministry from the regime government. However, regime officials denied this in statements to loyalist media.
Mohamed al-Darani (one of those displaced from Daraya) told Al-Hal that city notables had informed them that they would return to Daraya within the next two weeks, after the regime gave them permission and having obtained confirmation from officials in the Reconciliation Ministry. However, officials in the Damascus countryside province told regime loyalist media that the return of civilians would “be according to government conditions, but a date has not yet been set.”
The city of Daraya has been under regime control for more than two years, and has been empty of civilians since regime officials entered it. They have not permitted anyone to enter despite the end of their combing operations and after the opposition departed. Its residents are suffering greatly from the displacement in various parts of Damascus and its countryside, activists say.
This article was translated and edited by The Syrian Observer. Responsibility for the information and views set out in this article lies entirely with the author.
