Rebels Prepare for Eastern Ghouta Evacuation

Syrian rebels based in the Eastern Ghouta town of Harasta are preparing to leave the besieged suburb on Thursday as part of an evacuation agreement with the government, the Associated Press reported.

Citing pro-government media, the AP said that some 1,500 rebels and 6,000 civilians are expected to evacuate Harasta for the northern province of Idlib.

This is the first evacuation agreement to be reached in Eastern Ghouta since the Syrian government stepped up attacks on the area last month.

The arrangement between Damascus and the Ahrar al-Sham rebel group grants fighters and their families a safe exit to opposition-held territory in Syria’s north and an offer of reconciliation for those who wish to stay.

Ahrar al-Sham is the smallest rebel group in Eastern Ghouta.

Airstrikes on Idlib Kill More Than a Dozen Children

At least 20 people, including 16 children, were killed in airstrikes on Syria’s rebel-held Idlib province on Wednesday, Reuters reported.

Citing rescue workers, Reuters said the children were killed as they were fleeing an earlier strike on a school in the village of Kafr Batikh.

According to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, 15 of the 20 people killed in Wednesday’s strike were from the same family, Reuters said.

Earlier, on Monday, an airstrike on the Eastern Ghouta town of Arbin killed 15 children and two women who were sheltering in the basement of a school.

Israel Says It Will Prevent Its Enemies From Acquiring Nuclear Weapons

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Wednesday that his country would not allow its enemies to obtain nuclear weapons, Agence France-Presse reported.

“The Israeli government, the (Israeli military), and the Mossad (intelligence agency) have prevented Syria from developing nuclear capability, and they deserve every credit for this,” Netanyahu said on Twitter.

“Israel’s policy has been and remains consistent – to prevent our enemies from acquiring nuclear weapons.”

The remarks were the first by the prime minister since the Israeli military admitted for the first time on Wednesday that it had launched an airstrike on a suspected nuclear reactor in Syria in 2007.

Earlier on Wednesday, Israeli intelligence minister Yisrael Katz said the 2007 strike showed Israel would never allow nuclear weapons to be acquired by “countries like Iran who threaten its existence.”

Recommended Reads:

• Voice of America: Early Election Fever Grows With Turkish Military Victory in Syria
• Reuters: In Turkey’s Kurdish Heartland, Anger Over Syria War Finds a Stage
• Middle East Eye: After Victory in Afrin, a Turkey-U.S. Confrontation Looms in Syria
• Agence France-Presse: Dead and Disappeared: Syria Workers Say French Firm Abandoned Them
• The Guardian: Syrian Rebel Victory in Afrin Reveals Strength of Turkish-backed Force