Arabic to English Translation*
Returning to the files of dozens, if not hundreds, of Kurdish fighters and civilians captured and detained by the Turkish army during and after the aggression on Afrin, and transferred to Turkey, they were subjected to trials under Turkish laws that imposed harsh sentences upon them without committing any crime on Turkish soil and often based on fabricated charges. Even though some of them participated in legitimate autonomous-defense combat activities during the war, we find that Turkey has committed serious violations of international humanitarian law and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
The following are facts about the prevailing situation:
= Knife Attack on a Kurdish Civilian:
This morning, in the main street, amidst the crowded weekly bazaar of Raju town, and in full view of the numerous “civil and military police” patrols, which claim to maintain public order and protect civilians but did nothing to stop the perpetrator, “Al-Haj Abu Hisham,” from Adra, Damascus countryside, and a member of the “Army of Islam” militia, smashed the storefront of an olive oil shop owned by “Ameer Hussein Bilal” from the village of “Haj Khalil” – Raju. He then attacked Ameer’s brother, “Azad Hussein Bilal, /45/ years old,” with insults and a knife, causing a long and deep wound on his left arm that required medical attention at Raju hospital and subsequent transfer to the military hospital in Afrin. There was no prior conflict between the perpetrator and the “Bilal brothers,” nor any direct reason for the crime, yet the assailant is personally known to the police and local authorities and is infamous for his aggressiveness among the general public.
= Sentencing of a Prisoner of War to /20/ Years in Prison:
“Suleiman Jameel Kilkhlo, /30/ years old, married with children,” from the village of “Jalameh” – Jenderes, was part of the autonomous-defense forces (mandatory conscription) of the former autonomous-administration in Afrin. On the second day of the aggression on the region, January 21, 2018, along with other fighters, he was captured by the “Sham Legion” militia, as shown in a video published at the time and preserved by us, particularly “Kilkhlo,” who was injured in his leg. “Kilkhlo” disappeared, and months later it was revealed that he was in a Turkish prison, having been handed over by the Turkish army and transferred to Turkey, where he had been tortured. The Turkish Adana court later sentenced him to twenty years in prison on charges of “association with the former autonomous-administration,” despite his status as a prisoner of war, given that the conflict was of an international nature (Turkey – Syria). According to the Geneva Convention of 1929, the Third Geneva Convention of 1949, and Additional Protocol of 1977, prisoners of war cannot be prosecuted for their direct participation in hostilities, and their detention is not a form of punishment but solely to prevent their further participation in the conflict. Therefore, they must be released and repatriated without delay upon the cessation of hostilities.
According to a local source, “Kilkhlo” is currently in a prison in Hatay province. We have not been able to identify the other two Kurdish fighters seen in the mentioned video or determine their current status!
= Arbitrary Arrests:
The occupation authorities have arrested:
– Since September 2023, “Siwar Muhammed Arab, born in 1989,” from the village of “Kafrdaleh Fawqani” – Jenderes, on charges of participating in mandatory service with the former autonomous-administration, in the city of Mare’ while passing through it to return to his area from Aleppo, where he was displaced. He remains arbitrarily detained without trial.
– Approximately twenty days ago, “Nidal Abdeen Muhammed Oso, /35/ years old,” from the village of “Sheltat” – Bulbul, was arrested at a security checkpoint at the eastern entrance of Afrin on charges of association with the former autonomous-administration and was taken to Marateh central prison in Afrin city.
– About two weeks ago, “Ahmed Muhammed Sabri, /58/ years old,” from the village of “Mamolo” – Raju, was arrested days after returning to his village from Lebanon and taken to a prison in Raju town, where he remains under arbitrary detention.
– On June 8, 2024, the citizens “Aref Muhammed Kadalo, /52/ years old, and Muhammed Farouk Kadalo, /58/ years old,” were arrested from their home in the village of “Qalqeh/Jalameh” – Jenderes on charges of association with the former autonomous-administration. They were released the following day after each was fined /300/ USD.
= Forest Fires:
On the afternoon of Thursday, June 13, 2024, a fire was deliberately set in a natural forest on a mount between the villages of “Sheikhurzeh and Aboudan” – Bulbul, lasting until midnight. The “Syrian Civil Defense” confirmed that its teams extinguished the fire despite difficulties, noting the intentional nature of the fire. Armed militias, Turkish state forces, and local authorities did not participate in firefighting efforts in any way.
= Theft of Sumac:
According to a local source, militia fighters and their affiliates from settlers have begun stealing the sumac crop in the villages of Shara/Sharran and Bulbul, despite it not being ripe yet. The theft occurs in broad daylight before the eyes of security checkpoints and local authorities, who do nothing to stop it, and sometimes even in front of the owners of the trees, who do not dare to intervene or file complaints for fear of reprisals and worse consequences.
= Chaos and Outlaw:
– In the past two days, clashes have occurred between two armed groups from the “Al-Hayb” and “Al-Muwali” tribes, settlers living in the village of “Deir Sawwan” – Shara/Sharran, due to a fight between two children from both sides.
– On June 13, 2024, clashes erupted between a group led by “Abu Awad,” the head of “Omar Samu” village – Shara/Sharran, from the “Elite Army” militia, and armed members of the Muwali tribe, resulting in the injury of two women and the death of two “Elite” members, following a dispute over grazing livestock on land with wheat harvest remains near the “Nabi Huri” castle, which belongs to one of “Omar Samu’s” villagers and has been occupied by the “Elite” militia since 2018. Tensions remain high between the two sides.
– The “Syrian Civil Defense” confirmed that on Thursday, June 13, 2024, its teams retrieved the body of an unidentified man from agricultural land near the village of “Telefeh,” southwest of Afrin city. The man had been dead for several days. According to a local source, the man was one of the settlers in the area, and the circumstances and manner of his death are unknown.
The Turkish courts and those under Turkish occupation in northern Syria have issued unjust and harsh decisions against Kurdish prisoners and detainees on political and retaliatory grounds, often based on fabricated charges and without fair and just judicial procedures, in addition to the hundreds of forcibly disappeared and those who have lost their lives in secret detention centers and prisons.
15.06.2024
Media Office-Afrin
Kurdish Democratic Unity Party in Syria (Yekiti)
——————
Images:
– The assaulted citizen, “Azad Hussein Bilal”.
– The assailant, known as “Al-Haj Abu Hisham”.
– The young man, “Suleiman Jamil Kilkhlo”, with his companions during their capture by the “Sham Legion” militias, January 21, 2018.
– The detained young man, “Siwar Muhammad Arab”.
– A wildfire in a natural forest on the mountain between the villages of “Shikhurzeh and Aboudan” – Bulbul, June 13, 2024.
—————-
* Under the supervision of the European Organization of the Kurdish Democratic Unity Party in Syria (Yekîtî).
You can download the full file by clicking here: