Syrian forces enter war-torn Daraa, opposition alleges rights abuses
The Syrian government and rebel groups recently reached a cease-fire deal in the southern city that played a large role in the 2011 uprising.
Syrian government forces entered Daraa al-Balad on Wednesday as per an agreement with rebel groups in the southern Syrian city. Though there is a cease-fire, one opposition group recently alleged mistreatment at the hands of the government.
Syrian Arab Army units went into Daraa al-Balad to set up checkpoints and begin searching for weapons used by “terrorists,” the official SANA news outlet reported. The handover of weapons, as well as the “settling the status” of rebel fighters, began on Monday, according to the outlet.
Government and rebel forces reached an agreement on Monday in the neighborhood in the eponymous southern city of Daraa. The deal stipulated an end to the government siege on the area, deployment of government checkpoints under Russian supervision, reconciliation deals with Syrian army deserters and other wanted individuals, turning over weapons, and the evacuation of people refusing the agreement to rebel-held northern Syria, according to the pro-opposition Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.
The agreement followed a late August cease-fire between the two warring parties, though the government subsequently pushed for more concessions.
