LIVE: Aleppo evacuations
- Turkish NGO confirms 3,000 evacuated from eastern Aleppo
- Emergency Security Council meeting to negotiate UN observers in Aleppo
- Thousands await evacuation in freezing temperatures
- Civilian and rebels being moved to Idlib and west Aleppo countryside
- Medics in Idlib tell MEE ready to help but heavily under-equipped
Live Updates
Footage from east Aleppo resident and MEE contributor Zouhir al-Shimale shows frantic scenes as aid organisations and civilians prepare for evacuation to the Idlib province and Turkish border.
First batch of wounded have not left east Aleppo according to ICRC and rebel groups on the ground.
More the follow...
Trapped in Aleppo, US journalist Bilal Abdul Kareem says people are 'fighting for their families'
Severely injured people are being evacuated first, according to Zouhir al-Shimale, who is on the ground in eastern Aleppo, observing the evacuations.
"They evacuated the injured people and now they are taking the families of the severely injured people so it is a mixture right now," he said.
More to follow...
Coaches of injured people have started being evacuated via the Ramouseh road to the western Aleppo countryside, according to Halab Today, a local media outlet based in eastern Aleppo.
Syrian rebel groups on Wednesday announced a new ceasefire deal that would see the evacuation of wounded people and civilians from opposition-held districts of Aleppo the following morning.
But a source close to Syria's government denied the development, and the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said hostilities were ongoing.
The announcement came after a previous deal to evacuate both rebels and civilians was put on hold on Wednesday, with the opposition, the Syrian government and their backers trading accusations about responsibility for the agreement's suspension.
Good morning.
Here is a round-up of events that have taken place in the past 10 hours. The situation remained quiet until the early hours of this morning:
- Multiple reports of ambulances operated by the White Helmets rescue group being attacked by Iranian militias
- Evacuations resumed after they were paused in the early hours of this morning following the attack
- BBC correspondent reports that the British government are flying drones over east Aleppo documenting the devastation
Twenty green buses have arrived in east Aleppo to evacuate civilians in need of emergency medical care.
According to Zouhir al-Shimale, a citizen journalist on the ground, the process of evacuation has gone smoothly so far but in a tense atmosphere.
More to follow...
The Eiffel Tower in Paris went completely dark this evening in support of the people trapped in besieged eastern Aleppo.
The lights of the Eiffel Tower will be turned off on Wednesday evening in solidarity with the people of Aleppo.
Anne Hidalgo, the Mayor of Paris, made the announcement on Twitter.
The tower will go dark at 8pm local time as a symbol to honour the inhabitants of Aleppo, the besieged Syrian city that has been largely recaptured by pro-government forces in recent days.
Translation: I will switch off tonight at 8 pm to show Paris' support for the inhabitants of Aleppo in Syria.
Scenes of chaos are being described in east Aleppo as rebel held areas continue to be targeted by aerial bombardment.
MEE contributor Zouhir al-Shimale said that many of the injured were unable to be rescued as the bombing prevented residents from rescuing injured civilians.
"Many people are injured with no one being able to rescue them because of how intense the attacks are," said Al-Shimale.
Other residents also told MEE that some people were left on the streets as the intense bombing made it unsafe to reach injured civilians.