Dozens of Syrians held by Al Qaeda-linked insurgents were released on Tuesday as part of a deal to hand over areas around Damascus back into regime control.
State media broadcasted images of women and children arriving by bus at a government-controlled checkpoint.
The 42 Syrians, held by the insurgents in a village in rural Idlib as they swept into the province since 2015, are the first batch of more than 80 people to be released.
According to the deal, fighters linked to Al Qaeda will evacuate from the Yarmouk Palestinian refugee camp near Damascus while about 5,000 people in two northwestern villages besieged by rebel fighters will be allowed to move to government-held areas.
The Yarmouk evacuation deal is the latest agreement in areas around the Syrian capital that have come under intense regime bombardment as President Bashar Al Assad's military and its allies push to crush the last insurgent strongholds.
However, the deal does not include full government control over Yarmouk camp, where Mr Al Assad is bidding to strengthen his hold over the city, and the fall of Hajar Al Awsad, ISIS’s last remaining stronghold in the Syrian capital after it entered Yarmouk camp in 2015, would be a significant strategic victory for the Syrian dictator.
The United Nations has repeatedly warned of "catastrophic consequences" of the fighting affecting the civilians trapped inside the camp.
Established in 1952, Yarmouk camp has turned into a densely populated area where nearly 150,000 registered Palestinian refugees lived before Syria's conflict in 2011.
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Syria regime and rebels agree evacuation deal in southern Damascus
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Abdullah Al Khateeb, a human rights activist in the Yalda neighborhood of Damascus that lies less than two kilometers from Yarmouk camp, told The National that evacuations of the suburb will start on Wednesday.
"The evacuations will go on for four days, the operation will see the evacuation of 5,000 people – they will head towards Jarablus, Idlib and possibly De'arra. The evacuation will be monitored by Russian police," Mr Al Khateeb said.
The deal came on the same day that the US-led coalition and the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) announced that they had relaunched their battle to capture the last ISIS territory in the eastern Syrian province of Deir Ezzor.
The coalition of Kurdish and Arab militias said they had paused the fight against the insurgents after Turkey launched an assault in January against their northern region of Afrin.
US State Department spokeswoman Heather Nauert said in a statement: "The fighting will be difficult, but we and our partners will prevail. The days of ISIS controlling territory and terrorizing the people of Syria are coming to an end".
An additional deal is expected to take place in coming days, which will foresee the evacuation of three other suburbs south of Damascus.
Syria's state television, Al Ikhbariya, reported that approximately 20 wounded Syrians from the besieged villages of Foua and Kefraya were evacuated on Tuesday. But the evacuation of more than 1,000 residents of the villages stalled amid security concerns.
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Almnssa
Started: August 2020
Founder: Areej Selmi
Based: Gaza
Sectors: Internet, e-commerce
Investments: Grants/private funding
The Penguin
Starring: Colin Farrell, Cristin Milioti, Rhenzy Feliz
Creator: Lauren LeFranc
Rating: 4/5
COMPANY%20PROFILE
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ECompany%20name%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Revibe%20%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EStarted%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%202022%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFounders%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Hamza%20Iraqui%20and%20Abdessamad%20Ben%20Zakour%20%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EBased%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20UAE%20%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EIndustry%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Refurbished%20electronics%20%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFunds%20raised%20so%20far%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20%2410m%20%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestors%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EFlat6Labs%2C%20Resonance%20and%20various%20others%0D%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Other ways to buy used products in the UAE
UAE insurance firm Al Wathba National Insurance Company (AWNIC) last year launched an e-commerce website with a facility enabling users to buy car wrecks.
Bidders and potential buyers register on the online salvage car auction portal to view vehicles, review condition reports, or arrange physical surveys, and then start bidding for motors they plan to restore or harvest for parts.
Physical salvage car auctions are a common method for insurers around the world to move on heavily damaged vehicles, but AWNIC is one of the few UAE insurers to offer such services online.
For cars and less sizeable items such as bicycles and furniture, Dubizzle is arguably the best-known marketplace for pre-loved.
Founded in 2005, in recent years it has been joined by a plethora of Facebook community pages for shifting used goods, including Abu Dhabi Marketplace, Flea Market UAE and Arabian Ranches Souq Market while sites such as The Luxury Closet and Riot deal largely in second-hand fashion.
At the high-end of the pre-used spectrum, resellers such as Timepiece360.ae, WatchBox Middle East and Watches Market Dubai deal in authenticated second-hand luxury timepieces from brands such as Rolex, Hublot and Tag Heuer, with a warranty.
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: HyperSpace
Started: 2020
Founders: Alexander Heller, Rama Allen and Desi Gonzalez
Based: Dubai, UAE
Sector: Entertainment
Number of staff: 210
Investment raised: $75 million from investors including Galaxy Interactive, Riyadh Season, Sega Ventures and Apis Venture Partners
Vidaamuyarchi
Director: Magizh Thirumeni
Stars: Ajith Kumar, Arjun Sarja, Trisha Krishnan, Regina Cassandra
Rating: 4/5
The specs
Engine: Four electric motors, one at each wheel
Power: 579hp
Torque: 859Nm
Transmission: Single-speed automatic
Price: From Dh825,900
On sale: Now
Other workplace saving schemes
- The UAE government announced a retirement savings plan for private and free zone sector employees in 2023.
- Dubai’s savings retirement scheme for foreign employees working in the emirate’s government and public sector came into effect in 2022.
- National Bonds unveiled a Golden Pension Scheme in 2022 to help private-sector foreign employees with their financial planning.
- In April 2021, Hayah Insurance unveiled a workplace savings plan to help UAE employees save for their retirement.
- Lunate, an Abu Dhabi-based investment manager, has launched a fund that will allow UAE private companies to offer employees investment returns on end-of-service benefits.
THE SPECS
Engine: 1.5-litre
Transmission: 6-speed automatic
Power: 110 horsepower
Torque: 147Nm
Price: From Dh59,700
On sale: now
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Emergency
Director: Kangana Ranaut
Stars: Kangana Ranaut, Anupam Kher, Shreyas Talpade, Milind Soman, Mahima Chaudhry
Rating: 2/5