54 Syrian women, freed from militants return home in Latakia
More than 50 Syrian women and children have returned home in Latakia Province after the Syrian government secured their release from militant captivity in a prisoner swap deal.
The relatives of the 54 freed hostages welcomed them upon their arrival home on Thursday.
Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and his wife also received the women and children, who were freed earlier this week under a prisoner swap deal between the Syrian government and militant groups.
The so-called Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said Damascus and militants exchanged 112 people under the deal.
The so-called Free Syrian Army (FSA) forces had kidnapped the civilians in 2013 while attempting to seize several villages in the northern part of Latakia Province.
Reports said the Independent Organization of Detainee Affairs organized the prisoner swap, while the Red Crescent was present to facilitate and mediate.
The news comes as Damascus continues its advances against militants and terrorist groups across the country. Syrian army forces managed to establish control over several villages in the strategic northern province of Aleppo following intense clashes with Takfiri Daesh militants.
The news comes as Damascus continues its advances against militants and terrorist groups across the country.
Over the past almost six years, Syria has been fighting foreign-sponsored militancy. UN Special Envoy for Syria Staffan de Mistura estimated in August last year that more than 400,000 people had been killed in the Syrian crisis until then.
The UN has stopped its official casualty count in the war-torn country, citing its inability to verify the figures it receives from various sources.
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