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BEIRUT (Reuters) - A convoy of 10 buses carrying evacuees from the Shi’ite Muslim villages of al-Foua and Kefraya that have been besieged for years by rebels arrived in government-held Aleppo early on Monday, Syrian state television reported.

The evacuation of civilians from the villages is a condition for the departure of thousands of people trapped in the rebel-held zone of Aleppo who wish to go to insurgent-held parts of the countryside.