NEGOTIATIONS ONGOING BETWEEN DAMASCUS GOVERNMENT AND FAYLAQ AL-RAHMAN IN EASTERN GHOTUA

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The Damascus government and US-backed Faylaq al-Rahman have reahed an agreement over the evacuation of Faylaq al-Rahman fighters from Eastern Ghouta to the northern governorate of Idlib, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) reported on March 18.

The districts of Jobar, Ayn Tarma, Irbin, Zamalka and Hazzah in the Eastern Ghouta region are currently under the control of Faylaq al-Rahman and elements of the former branch of al-Qaeda in Syria, Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS).

Earlier, Wael Alwan, Faylaq al-Rahman’s spokesman confirmed to Reuters that the US-backed group is negotiating with the Damascus government to “guarantee the safety and protection of civilians.”

“The most important points under negotiation are a ceasefire, ensuring aid for civilians and the exit of medical cases and injured people needing treatment outside Ghouta,” Alwan said.

However, Alwan claimed that a general evacuation of civilians and militants from the Eastern Ghouta region is not on the negotiation table. This contradicts to the SOHR report.

According to Syrian pro-government sources, the Syrian Arab Army (SAA), the Tiger Forces and the Russian Aerospace Forces are currently preparing to launch a final attack on the last strongholds of Faylaq al-Rahman if the negotiations fail.

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