BEIRUT - Syrian rebels handed in their heavy weapons in a town southwest of Damascus, on Sunday, as part of a deal they have made with the government to get safe passage to insurgent-controlled areas, state-affiliated media said. Through a series of so-called 'settlement' agreements and army offensives, the Syrian government, backed by Russian air power and Iranian-backed militias, has been steadily suppressing armed opposition to its rule in the capital city's suburbs. Rebels fighting President Bashar Assad and his government say the deals are part of a strategy to forcibly displace whole populations from opposition-held areas after years of siege and bombardment. The United Nations estimates 12,000 people have been besieged in Khan al-Shih, where a Palestinian refugee camp is located, in the Damascus suburbs for years. The last month has seen heavy clashes and air strikes there, ending this week with the evacuation deal.
(photo credit: The Jerusalem Post)