Green buses carrying hundreds of worn-out fighters left the city of Homs on Wednesday as part of a temporary truce between the forces of Syrian President Bashar Assad and the insurgents fighting them.
Reuters reports that more than 1,900 fighters and their civilian relatives were set to leave the city once known as "the capital of the revolution" under the truce. While some of the rebels holed up in the city had sworn to defend it until their death, a year-long siege had left many injured and undernourished.
Footage of the convoy provided a rare glimpse into what's left of the battered city after years of fighting and bombardments. The citizens of Homs were some of the first to join the protests against the regime of Bashar Assad, and the city has been the focus of a series of ruthless offensives by regime forces. Video and photos shot on Wednesday by the anti-government activist group Coordination Committee of Khalidiya Neighborhood in Homs and verified by the Associated Press show deserted streets left in ruins, dead trees, crumbling buildings and the pierced roof of a mosque.
(AP Photo/The Coordination Committee of Khalidiya Neighborhood in Homs)
(AP Photo/The Coordination Committee of Khalidiya Neighborhood in Homs)
(AP Photo/The Coordination Committee of Khalidiya Neighborhood in Homs)