Syrian regime forces on Wednesday arrested about 1,100 people fleeing Qaboun, north of Damascus, despite an agreement reached Sunday to evacuate the opposition-held district.
State-run television quoted the Damascus provincial governor as saying the Qaboun district was “empty of militants," although locals told Zaman al-Wasl that 600 men and 500 women were being detained by regime forces.
Most of the detainees were escaping siege in the Eastern Ghouta suburbs into Qaboun through an opposition-dug tunnel. Regime forces later destroyed the tunnel, according to sources.
The U.K.-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said hundreds of rebel fighters had left on Monday, headed for areas further east of Damascus or to the northwestern province of Idleb.
On Sunday, more than 2,000 rebels and their family members left Qaboun, state media said.
This article was edited by The Syrian Observer. Responsibility for the information and views set out in this article lies entirely with the author.
