After four years of siege and bombardment, the evacuation is underway of civilians and rebels from embattled Daraya, southwest of Syria's capital Damascus. Rebels agreed to hand over control of the city to the government in exchange for safe passage. Under the terms of the deal, about 4,000 civilians will be transported to temporary accommodation outside of Damascus. Approximately 700 fighters will head to rebel-held Idlib after surrendering their weapons, according to Syria's SANA state news agency. As NPR's Alice Fordham tells our Newscast unit, some civilians "say they'll flee with the fighters, because they fear the regime."
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