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After a military defeat in the battle for the Douma district of Eastern Ghouta, Jaish al-Islam militants released a first group of hostages, mostly women, late on April 8.
According to the Syrian state-run news agency SANA, the most of the hostages were captured by militants in the city of Adraa in 2013. Since then, they had been held in the militant-held town of Douma.
The state-run media outlet added (source):
[SANA] correspondent added that after the bus which carries abductees on board got out of Douma, five buses carrying scores of “Jaish al-Islam” terrorists on board and their families exited the city in a step towards transporting them later to Jarablos area.
The correspondent stressed that the process of liberating the abductees comes in line with the process of evacuating terrorists and their families till liberating all the abductees and evacuating all terrorists and consequently declaring Douma as a city free of terrorism.
Meanwhile, a first group of Jaish al-Islam militants also left the area of Douma. A second group of militants is expected to left the area on April 9.
Following a full withdrawal of militants from Douma, government forces will establish a full control of the area.
Photos of the released hotsages:
Click to see the full-size image
Click to see the full-size image
Click to see the full-size image
Click to see the full-size image
A warehouse and underground tunnel network are discovered by government forces in Eastern Ghouta:
