Syrians were evacuated from rebel-held neighbourhoods in the embattled city of Aleppo. (AFP)
ISTANBUL:
A second round of evacuations from Syria's eastern Aleppo was completed on Thursday, a Turkish official said, and Syrian government television said a third convoy was on its way, under an effort that could see 100,000 people evacuated.
The operation to evacuate thousands from the last rebel bastion in Aleppo began on Thursday, part of a ceasefire deal that would end years of fighting for the city and mark a major victory for Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.
The second convoy was made up of 1,198 people - 577 male, 320 women and 301 children - with 12 wounded among them, the official said.
Turkish Deputy Prime Minister Veysi Kaynak said earlier on Thursday that a convoy of 20 buses, capable of carrying around 1,000 people, was being used for the evacuation, shuttling in and out.
Kaynak also said the number of people brought out of the city could reach 100,000.
Syrian government television reported that a third convoy was also under way, although no further details were immediately available.
Separately, a Syrian opposition activist says wounded children and their families had been brought to a hospital in the Turkish city of Gaziantep.
© Thomson Reuters 2016