A member of forces loyal to Syria's President Bashar al-Assad stands with a civilian on the rubble of the Carlton Hotel, in the government controlled area of Aleppo, Syria December 17, 2016. REUTERS/Omar Sanadiki

BEIRUT (Reuters) - Syrian state television reported on Sunday that there was a deal between the government and rebels to evacuate people from east Aleppo in return for the evacuation of people from al-Foua and Kefraya, two villages besieged by insurgents.

According to al-Ikhbariya TV news, about 1,200 civilians would initially be evacuated from east Aleppo and a similar number from the two villages in Idlib province.

Once evacuees from the villages have safely arrived in government areas, Aleppo fighters and more of their family members will be allowed to leave in return for other batches of people departing al-Foua and Kefraya.

A document cited by Lebanese group Hezbollah’s al-Manar television and passed to Reuters by rebels and activists said the deal would see 2,500 citizens leave al-Foua and Kefraya in exchange for the evacuation of people from east Aleppo.

Following this, another 1,500 will leave al-Foua and Kefraya in exchange for the evacuation of 1,500 from Madaya and neighboring town Zabadani, which are besieged by pro-Syrian government forces.

(This version of the story was corrected to add the town of Zabadani in the deal in paragraph 5)