Russian military police have begun patrolling in the militant-free city of Deraa al-Balad in southwestern Syria, a TASS correspondent reports.
Russian servicemen together with local self-defense units and Syrian government troops are patrolling the city. Russian and Syrian flags are hoisted over local administrative buildings. The Russian military is also providing humanitarian aid to the local residents. Representatives of the Russian Center for reconciliation of the warring parties delivered and distributed about 1,000 food kits, weighing over eight tons.
In early September, the fighters and their families started to leave the town through a humanitarian corridor after the participation of representatives of the Russian Center in the negotiations. Surrendering weapons and settling their status are conditions for amnesty of the members of the illegal armed groups. The fighters can also leave the city and go to the Idlib de-escalation zone in northern Syria.
"More than 1,600 people have already settled their status. About 600 small arms have been surrendered. Police stations have been organized and specialists are working to detect ammunition," Alexander Gulyaev, a representative of the Center for the reconciliation of the warring parties, told reporters.
Earlier, Russian foreign minister Sergey Lavrov said at a press conference in Moscow that Deraa al-Balad should be completely under control of government forces and all heavy weaponry should be handed over to the Syrian army.
Developments in the city
Anti-government protests started in Deraa el-Balad in 2011 and eventually turned into a war between the Syrian government army and fighters. For a long time, the city and neighboring areas of Deraa were under the control of the terrorist group Jabhat al-Nusra (banned in Russia). In August 2018, amid the success of government forces supported by the Russian Air Force, supporters of the Islamist opposition and representatives of the local population joined the so-called reconciliation committees. Under the terms of the 2018 reconciliation agreement, the southern regions remained under the control of Syrian opposition units.
The fighters surrendered heavy weapons and military equipment, and many of them returned to civilian life. However, the situation has not been fully stabilized until recently. There were clashes between different groups of fighters, attacks on authorities, security services and civilians. In August, the Syrian government army was forced to launch an operation to restore order in the city.
A new local reconciliation agreement in southern Syria was reached on September 1 after more than a month of siege by government forces of Deraa al-Balad, Tariq al-Sad and other areas. Members of opposition militias handed over their weapons, including anti-tank grenades and multiple rocket launchers, to the Syrian army. As for the extremists who refused to lay down their arms, the ceasefire gave them the opportunity to leave Deraa al-Balad with their families by bus to the northwestern province of Idlib, which is in the hands of anti-government groups.
On Wednesday, Syrian army units entered the town, setting up roadblocks at major intersections.
The city of Deraa al-Balad is located in southwestern Syria, 110 kilometers south of Damascus, and is the administrative center of Deraa province.
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Photo: Andrey Gryaznov / TASS
Based on materials from TASS