THE evacuation process from east Aleppo finally got under way yesterday after fresh negotiations led to a re-established ceasefire.

Buses and ambulances carried the first batch of 5,000 people from Ramouseh, in the south of the occupied pocket, to areas west of the city held by their allies.

The official Sana news agency said loud explosions had been heard as the rebels detonated their remaining ammunition dumps and burnt piles of documents that might incriminate their foreign backers.