Arabic to English Translation*
On the Basis of Racism, Hatred, and Supremacy Promoted by Turkish Occupation and Islamist Extremists and Nationalist Fanatics Against the Kurds, their lives, property, and geography are being violated. The series of crimes committed against them has not ceased, including direct killings since the first day of the aggression on Afrin on January 20, 2018, to this day, alongside dozens of daily varied assaults.
The following are facts about the prevailing conditions:
=Kurdish Civilian Martyred by “Al-Hamzat” Gunfire:
At 2 AM on Wednesday, June 19, a group of armed militants from the “Hamza Division” militia was stationed west of the village of “Juiqeh/Jouiq” on the main road leading to the village of “Dargireh” – Mobato/Maabatli. They fired directly at citizens “Jamal Ali son of Muhammad Koulin /27/ years old – married with two children, and Muhammad Waleed Aleeko /22/ years old” from the village of “Dargireh” as they were returning from work in Afrin city on a motorcycle. They were critically injured and taken to the private Syrian Specialty Hospital in Afrin.
On the night of Friday, June 21, “Jamal” succumbed to his injuries, while “Muhammad” remains bedridden. The militias “Military Police and Joint Forces (Hamza Division, Sultan Suleiman Shah Division)” imposed a restriction on the intensive care room to prevent photography and news dissemination, and they surrounded the village of “Dargireh” to restrict the movement of citizens and prevent any public gatherings. They had also arrested the only witness to the crime, “Baker Adnan Baker /25/ years old” from the same village, who was riding his motorcycle behind the victims during the attack. He was released under the condition that he doesn’t discuss the crime’s details under the threat of death.
The group was not at a known, established checkpoint and was certainly out for theft, extortion, or to commit some crime. However, the “Military Police in Afrin” tried to distort the facts and absolve the criminals in a statement published on June 19, 2024, falsely claiming they were on a joint patrol with the “Joint Forces” searching for a fugitive from prison during the Eid. They alleged that one of their members shot the victims because they did not stop at the checkpoint! and published a photo of two members they claimed were responsible for Jamal’s death according to Halab Today TV.
Jamal’s body was laid to rest in the village cemetery, attended by a crowd of villagers chanting slogans against the militias and honoring the martyr’s spirit.
= Kidnapping of a Kurdish Youth:
On Wednesday, June 26, 2024, “Rasheed Sameer Ali /23/ years old – from the Shukri Misteh Ali family,” from the village of “Kuira” – Jenderes, was kidnapped by an armed group after leaving his clothing store on Yalanqoz street in Jenderes city, intending to go to his village on a motorcycle. The kidnappers demanded a large ransom for his release, threatening to kill him if any authorities were informed.
= Assault on an Elderly Yazidi Man and His Wife:
At midnight on Saturday/Sunday, June 23, 2024, an armed masked group raided the home of elderly Kurdish Yazidi “Jimo Saleh Jimo /80/ years old” in the village of “Basufan” – Sheirawa. They brandished weapons at him and his wife, “Ghazala Darweesh Arbo /70/ years old,” tied them up, and threatened to kill them if they moved or screamed. They then stole gold jewelry, a sum of money, and two mobile phones, and fled after untying them. This occurred despite the presence of an armed “Sham Legion” militia checkpoint just tens of meters from the house.
= Assault on Two Kurdish Children:
– Two weeks ago, militants from the “Jaysh al-Sharqiya” militia verbally abused and severely beat the minor “Muhammad Fareed Ali Kasab” in front of his home on the Hamam village road in Jenderes city, in front of his family. They also insulted his family and the Kurds of Jenderes, falsely accusing the minor of insulting Arabs. This is the same militia that committed the Newrouz Jenderes massacre in 2023 against the “Peshmerga” family.
-On June 23, 2024, militants from the “Hamza Division” militia severely beat an orphaned child with special needs, “Ahmad Kamiran Meho /13/ years old” from the village of “Blilko” – Raju, near the industrial school in the Mahmudiyah neighborhood of Afrin city. He was taken to the hospital for treatment.
= Arbitrary Arrests:
The occupation authorities arrested:
– On June 13, 2024, citizen “Adnan Nami Osman /26/ years old, nicknamed Armanj” from the village of “Ain al-Hajar” – Mobato/Maabatli, by the “Military Police in Jarabulus” militia on his way back from Aleppo the destination of displacement to his area. He was accused of having connections with the former autonomous administration, despite not being an employee there. His brother “Osman” was a fighter in the Kurdish units and was martyred during the aggression on Afrin. The “Military Police” released his wife, who was with him, but kept him in arbitrary detention. It is noted that Armanj’s father died at the age of /55/ in the Shahba area of northern Aleppo, grieving over the tragedies that befell his family, and his mother lives alone in “Ain al-Hajar.”
– On June 14, 2024, the brothers ” Muhammad /35/ years old and Faiq /33/ years old, sons of Zamji Murad” from the town of “Kafr Safra” – Jenderes, by the “Military Police in Jarabulus,” without explanation. Faiq had welcomed his brother Muhammad, who had returned from Aleppo after being displaced since 2018, with prior approval from the “Military Police in Jenderes.” They were on their way back to Afrin and remain in arbitrary detention in Jarabulus.
– On June 25, 2024, the citizens “Ali Hussein /40/ years old – village mayor, released after a day, the brothers Hussein /35/ years old and Muhammad /38/ years old, sons of Hassan Hamoud, Muhammad Jumaa Soro /40/ years old” from the village of “Diwa Foqani” – Jenderes, by the Turkish intelligence and the “Civil Police in Jenderes” for demanding their seized homes. The next day, they also arrested from the same village the citizens “Yahya Hassan Muhammad /44/ years old, Waleed Hassan Muhammad /58/ years old, Khaleel Hassan Muhammad /52/ years old, Ahmed Mustafa Hamoud /33/ years old” for the same reason, fabricating charges of connections with the former autonomous administration for all. They were released after a financial fine was imposed on each, except for “Hussein Hassan Hamoud,” who remains in arbitrary detention.
= Return of the Criminal “Abu Habib Khisham” to Jenderes:
The Al-Rai Court- Al Bab, under Turkish occupation, had issued a death sentence – subject to appeal – on three criminals (Omar Saleh Al-Asmar, born 2000, Habib Ali Khalaf, born 2004, Bilal Ahmed Al-Aboud, born 2000) in the case of the Newrouz Jenderes massacre 2023, where four martyrs from the “Peshmerga” family were killed. However, it recently released “Ali Khalaf/Abu Habib Khisham,” the father of the second defendant, citing insufficient evidence, despite the plaintiff providing multiple testimonies of his direct involvement in the crime. He incited the criminals, supplied them with weapons, was present at the crime scene, received the weapons from the perpetrators after the act, and helped them escape, directly overseeing and contributing to the crime.
Shockingly, after his release, “Ali Khalaf” returned to live in Jenderes, seen roaming its streets and among the armed “Haj Iskandar” checkpoint elements west of Jenderes.
This egregiously violates Syrian penal law and social norms, as he did not receive just punishment, being a leader of a Turkey-loyal militia and protected by its intelligence. At the very least, the judicial authorities and local authorities should have barred him from residing in the area where the crime occurred, given its serious implications for the innocent Peshmerga family and the cultural values of Newrouz and dignity of the Kurdish people, rooted in racist and hateful motives.
The escape of “Abu Habib Khisham” from punishment and his return to the ranks of the “Jaysh al-Sharqiya” militia and residence in Jenderes is a challenge to the feelings and will of the victims’ families and the Kurds, who protested massively against the massacre, especially domestically. This situation also encourages the commission of other crimes.
It is noteworthy that these criminals were elements of the “Liberation and Construction Movement” militia, part of the so-called “Syrian National Army” related to the Syrian-Brotherhood coalition affiliated with Turkey and based in the village of “Khisham” in the Deir Ezzor countryside.
= Killing of an ISIS Leader:
On the evening of June 16, 2024, news emerged of the death of a person carrying an ID card issued by the local council in Afrin under Turkish occupation, near the settlement village of “Kuwait Al-Rahma” on Mount Leelon – Afrin. The “Syrian Interim Government” led by Abdul Rahman Mustafa issued a statement the next day, describing it as a crime and accusing the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) of shelling the village (resulting in the martyrdom of one man and injuries to others).
However, on June 19, 2024, the U.S. Central Command stated on the X platform that “on June 16, a U.S. airstrike in Syria killed Osama Jamal Muhammad Ibrahim Al-Janabi (an Iraqi national), a senior ISIS leader. His death will disrupt ISIS’s ability to resource and carry out terrorist attacks… No civilian casualties were reported in this strike.”
“Osama” was residing with his wife in one of the houses in “Kuwait Al-Rahma,” under the control of “Abu Yusuf Mayadeen,” a leader of the “Hamza Division” militia.
It is noted that hundreds of ISIS elements, including leaders, fled to occupied Afrin and other Turkish-occupied areas in northern Syria, either to cross abroad or join pro-Turkey militias, especially “Ahrar al-Sharqiya” and “Jaysh al-Sharqiya.”
On July 12, 2022, the international coalition, in a special operation, killed ISIS leaders “Maher Al-Aqal and Manhal Al-Aqal” near the village of “Khalta” – Jenderes.
On April 30, 2023, Turkey announced that it had neutralized ISIS leader Abu Hussein Al-Qurashi, targeting a building on the main road between the villages of “Sandanka and Maskanah Tahtani” – Jenderes, which was under the control and protection of the “Jaysh al-Sharqiya” militia.
= Forest Fires:
Since its occupation in 2018, forest fires in Afrin have increased due to extensive cutting, the presence of dry remains, and deliberate arson to cover up logging operations or facilitate the removal of buried stumps. Rapid and effective firefighting operations are lacking, as Turkey and its allied militias refrain from participating, leaving the task to the “Syrian Civil Defense” teams with their limited capabilities:
– Starting from the evening of Eid al-Adha on June 15, 2024, and for three days, fires consumed large areas of natural forests near the Syrian-Turkish border, around the village of “Beikeh/Bik Obasi” – Bulbul, extending towards the villages of “Meydono” – Raju. The fires stopped on their own after futile attempts by the “Syrian Civil Defense” to extinguish them, causing damage to olive fields and other fruit trees.
– On June 15, 2024, another fire broke out in the forest of Mount Hawar (Chieh/Al-Jabaliya) – Raju, which was extinguished by the “Syrian Civil Defense” teams, causing significant damage between June 3-6, 2024.
– On June 27-28, 2024, a fire broke out in a forest near the village of “Haj Hasna/Haj Hasnli” – Jenderes. The “Syrian Civil Defense” confirmed that it was difficult to extinguish, as the published photos show cut tree trunks intended for firewood and the accumulation of dry remains.
= Chaos and Outlaw:
– On the evening of June 15, 2024, a brawl and shooting occurred between newcomers from Qalamoun – Damascus countryside, under the name “Qalamoun Gathering,” and others from Aleppo, in the Ashrafieh neighborhood of Afrin city, due to internal disputes. This led to the burning of houses and shops, looting of some, and injuries to some people.
– On the evening of June 19, 2024, violent clashes occurred between two groups of the “Hamza Division” militia near the checkpoint at the entrance of the village of “Moroteh” west of Afrin city, due to a dispute over looted goods and areas of influence, resulting in injuries on both sides.
– On June 21-22, 2024, violent clashes occurred between two groups of “Sham Legion” militias, with tension lasting for days. “North Sector Command” groups in Meydan Akbas town and Meydono, Qara Baba, Kharabi Suilik, and other villages in Raju mobilized and controlled the situation. The clashes began in “Kharabi Suilik” village when the command group attempted to assert control and arrest a leader of a splinter group, extending to Midan Akbas town. This followed a splinter group’s attack on their headquarters in “Mustafa Adami’s” seized house, causing panic among civilians in Meydan Akbas town and damaging the house. The clashes resulted in injuries and material damage to civilians’ properties, with four brigades “comprising 400 elements” issuing a statement announcing their withdrawal from the Sham Legion, accusing its leadership of harassment and abuses against them.
There is a media blackout on the region, and many violations and crimes in Afrin are not publicly disclosed or monitored and documented by concerned parties. Many targeted individuals refrain from announcing what happens to them or filing complaints, preferring to keep their wounds hidden, fearing worse repercussions.
29.06.2024
Media Office-Afrin
Kurdish Democratic Unity Party in Syria (Yekiti)
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Images:
– The martyr “Jamal Ali son of Muhammad Kouleen”.
– The injured young man “Muhammad Waleed Aleeko”.
– Two members of the Hamzat group who assaulted the young men from “Dargireh,” detained by the “Military Police in Afrin,” one of whom is in civilian clothing.
– The assaulted child “Ahmad Kamiran Meho”.
– The preperator and partner in the Jenderes Newrouz massacre 2023, the so-called “Ali Khalaf/Abu Habib Khisham”.
– “Syrian Interim Government” statement about targeting the settlement village of “Kuwait Al-Rahma” in June 16, 2024.
– U.S. Central Command’s post on the X platform in June 19, 2024, about killing the ISIS leader “Osama Jamal Muhammad Ibrahim Al-Janabi”.
– Fire at the forest of “Beikeh/Bik Obasi” mountain – Bulbul.
– Fire at “Haj Hasna” forest – Jenderes, showing chopped tree trunks.
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* Under the supervision of the European Organization of the Kurdish Democratic Unity Party in Syria (Yekîtî).
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