DAMASCUS – Russia’s military to conduct one of the dangerous operations inSyria and the operation would begin on Sunday to bring fighters of theJaish al-Islam rebel group out of their besieged enclave of Douma, Interfaxreported, after the Syrian government said the group had asked fornegotiations.

There was no immediate comment from Jaish al-Islam. The group so far hasrejected a Russian offer of safe passage out of Douma, which is nearDamascus, to rebel-held areas at the border with Turkey.

Major-General Yuri Yevtushenko, head of the Russian peace andreconciliation centre in Syria, said the operation to take “irreconciablemilitants” out of Douma would begin on Sunday.

Jaish al-Islam accused the Syrian government of carrying out a chemicalattack on Douma on Saturday evening that a medical relief organisation andrescue workers say killed dozens of people. The government has deniedcarrying out such an attack.

Citing sources in Jaish al-Islam, the pro-Syrian opposition Orienttelevision said talks were underway between the group and Russia aboutreaching a final agreement for Douma.

Syrian President Bashar al-Assad has won back control of nearly all ofeastern Ghouta in a Russian-backed military campaign that began inFebruary, leaving just Douma in rebel hands. After a lull of a few days,government forces began bombarding Douma again on Friday.

The offensive in Ghouta has been one of the deadliest of theseven-year-long war, killing more than 1,600 civilians, according to theSyrian Observatory for Human Rights.