Nearly a thousand people were evacuated from the last rebel-held areas of Aleppo on Thursday. The evacuation, which is expected to continue in the coming days, effectively cedes control of the last opposition urban stronghold to the Syrian government. Syrian president Bashar al-Assad posted a video message online, hailing the “liberation of Aleppo” while Russia declared its military operation over, as some of the last rebel fighters were bussed from the city