A/HRC/39/65 winter weather. They also struggled to cope owing to their limited access to basic services, including water and electricity, and the high prices for basic commodities. Their suffering was exacerbated when, in early March, their access to the main water pumping station in Matina village was severed, leaving them without running water for weeks. Distressed civilians recalled how, in desperation, they relied on wells for both consumption and sanitation. Overcrowding led to severe shortages of food, as witnessed in the long queues of displaced individuals in front of bakeries. Civilians recalled that, as aerial and ground operations moved closer to Afrin city, they were forced to hide in cellars for days, without access to toilets, limited quantities of (unpotable) water, and no food. 70. By mid-March, when aerial and ground bombardments reached Afrin city, desperate civilians fled to areas under government control, resulting in a second wave of displacement. Those displaced described how thousands of men, women and children had fled the city. By 18 March, when Afrin district was officially declared captured, approximately 98,000 of more than 320,000 displaced men, women and children had been registered in the towns of Tal Refaat, Nabul and Zahraa. 71. At the time of writing, more than 138,000 displaced individuals remained in Tal Refaat, Nabul and Zahraa, and in surrounding communities. The dire general humanitarian situation that the civilian population currently endures is further exacerbated by the fact that aid agencies require authorization by the Governor of Hatay, in Turkey, to serve certain areas. Despite the greater presence of humanitarian partners in these areas, assistance and services are still insufficient, particularly for those displaced to rural areas. Civilians described facilities in sites for those displaced as substandard and inadequately equipped to ensure the dignity and safety of women and children. Some displaced men described fearing forced recruitment by government forces. 72. Persons internally displaced from Afrin are still subject to significant restrictions on their freedom of movement. Villagers in particular stated that members of armed groups refused to allow them to re-enter their villages through checkpoints unless they paid a bribe ranging from $50 to $75. A number of residents from Afrin district expressed their reluctance and indeed fear of returning to live under its new authorities. Northern Homs governorate 73. On 1 May, pro-government forces and armed groups reached a local truce and “evacuation agreement” to transport fighters, their families and other civilians from the towns of Rastan, Telbiseh, al Houla and Zafarana to Idlib and northern Aleppo, which are under armed group control. The first round of evacuations scheduled for 5 May was postponed two days to facilitate the evacuation of civilians from southern Damascus (paras. 79–81). 74. Pursuant to the local truce, and after establishing gathering points in Rastan and Telbiseh, civilians in the area were informed of their evacuation to Idlib and Jarablus, Aleppo on 1 May. Owing to the hostilities and the notorious living conditions for internally displaced persons in Idlib (see paras. 86–89 below), however, most elected to go to Jarablus. Others reportedly went to Afrin, while up to 217,000 remained in the area. 75. After government forces declared the area recaptured on 15 May, displaced civilians consistently described how they decided to leave owing to their fear of remaining and the imposition of military service on all men between 18 and 42 years of age. One man stated that his entire family had left their home in Zafarana, despite their fear of looting or of the destruction of their property, because they feared reprisal violence and the prospect of forced conscription even more. 76. From 7 to 16 May, approximately 35,000 men, women and children, under the supervision of Russian military police, were transported on government buses and vehicles from villages in northern Homs primarily to Idlib and Jarablus, Aleppo. Lack of coordination among parties to the agreement and armed groups manning the areas near Jarablus, however, led to prolonged delays for civilians displaced from Rastan. On 9 May, at a checkpoint in Al-Bab, civilians waited for hours to cross into Jarablus, without basic 14