Thousands evacuated from Syria's Aleppo with UN help: spokesman

In an operation that started on Thursday and continued into Friday morning, thousands of people were evacuated from Aleppo, including 194 patients who were evacuated with assistance from the Syria Arab Red Crescent, International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) and the United Nations, a UN spokesman told reporters here on Friday.

"They were brought to hospitals in Idlib, western rural Aleppo and to Turkey, with the support of humanitarian health partners in Gaziantep," UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric said. "The evacuation of wounded and civilians from the besieged enclave of eastern Aleppo city was unfortunately suspended by the Syrian authorities earlier on Friday."

"The UN urged the parties to take all necessary measures to allow safe resumption of the evacuations," Dujarric said, adding that it is estimated that a high number of vulnerable people, including wounded, children remain in desperate conditions.

There are reports of children trapped in basements for days, sending pleas for safety, he noted.

"The UN and partners in Idlib have prepositioned supplies and are ready to provide assistance to all those in need and evacuated from eastern Aleppo," he said. "The United Nations stands ready to support the evacuation process by providing protection through its presence, and we have communicated this clearly to the parties." Enditem