The Syrian government declared that its forces have retaken the country's third-largest city of Homs, with a final batch of rebels leaving the last opposition-held district of al-Waer on Sunday.

Government forces had long besieged this area of the city, which was one of the early centers of the Syrian civil war. The evacuation came after a deal was reached between the rebels and the government under the mediation of Russia.

According to Syria's state television, 12 batches of rebels and their relatives have left al-Waer since March, with the total number of evacuees estimated at over 17,000.

The evacuation marks the first time Homs has been entirely under Syrian government control since the country's civil war began more than six years ago.

(With inputs from Reuters)