ALEPPO: A Syrian bus convoy transporting evacuees of two villages was hit by a blast on the outskirts of Aleppo.
According to reports in foreign media, the blast was reportedly caused by a suicide attacker detonating a car bomb. Syrian state media reported that at least 39 people were killed, while sources on the ground said that at least 70 people died while 128 others were injured.
The United Nations has condemned the attack and has demanded that all parties offer safe passage to evacuees.
The bus convoy was transporting around 5,000 residents from the predominantly Shiite villages of al-Foua’a and Kefraya.
According to reports, the bomb had been hidden in a car filled with children’s food supplies so that it could be snuck into the area.
The attack took place on the outskirts of Aleppo in the Rashideen area while the convoy was waiting to enter the city.
The buses were waiting to take people who were evacuated from the two Shiite villages on Friday from rebel-held territory into the government-controlled city.
The residents, along with hundreds of pro-government fighters, had come from the two rebel-besieged villages in northwest Idlib province, media reported. In exchange, hundreds of Sunni insurgents and their families moved out of government-controlled areas near Damascus, Syria’s capital.
However, a delay in the agreement reportedly caused thousands of evacuated people to be stranded at two transit points on Aleppo’s outskirts since late Friday.
The United Nations on Saturday condemned the blast saying that those responsible must be brought to justice.
“We condemn the attack today in Rashideen, west Aleppo, on 5,000 evacuees traveling from the towns of Foah and Kefraya to government-controlled areas,” Stephane Dujarric, spokesperson for UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, said in a statement.
“We call on the parties to ensure the safety and security of those waiting to be evacuated,” he said, adding, “Those responsible for today’s attack must be brought to justice.”
