ISTANBUL: Close to 8,000 civilians have been evacuated from the Syrian city of Aleppo with a sixth convoy currently "en route to safety", a Turkish official said on Friday.

Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said on Twitter that more than 7,000 civilians had been evacuated in the first five convoys.

The evacuation, from the last rebel bastion in Aleppo, began on Thursday under a ceasefire deal brokered by Turkey and Russia that would end years of fighting for the city and mark a major victory for Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.