The Syrian government draws closer to taking full control of Eastern Ghouta. On Monday, fighters began evacuating the last rebel-held pocket of the former opposition stronghold near Damascus.

State news agency SANA said on Monday that twelve buses carrying over six-hundred Jaish al-Islam fighters and their families exited the enclave's main town of Douma. This was in preparation for being transported to a rebel-held town in northern Syria. Jaish al-Islam is the largest rebel group still in Eastern Ghouta. The retaking of the area would mark a major milestone in President Bashar al-Assad's efforts to regain control of territory seized by rebel factions during Syria's seven-year civil war.