Future uncertain as jihadis begin to leave Damascus' Yarmouk camp
Fighters from Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, a former al-Qaeda affiliate, are leaving Syria’s largest Palestinian refugee camp as per a deal with the regime, although the residents do not seem so enthusiastic.
Fighters from jihadi groups inside the Yarmouk camp in south Damascus are preparing to leave what was once Syria’s largest camp for Palestinian refugees, according to local activists and monitoring groups.
Islamic State (IS) militants currently stationed in Yarmouk and the group’s Damascus stronghold in neighboring Hajar al-Aswad may be preparing to leave Yarmouk under a landmark agreement with the Syrian government, just two weeks after the first fighters from Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, formerly known as al-Qaeda’s Syrian affiliate Jabhat al-Nusra, left the camp.
The UK-based Action Group for Palestinians of Syria reported May 23 that “on-the-spot observers in Yarmouk … said IS militias have been evacuating their sites in the area,” ahead of a possible deal with Damascus to head to Raqqa.
Images shared on social media also showed posters purportedly distributed in local mosques asking civilians wishing to travel to Raqqa to register their names.
