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Appeal for saving Afrin
(momerandum)
To:
The general secretary of the united nations,Mr.Antonio Goteres _the international envoy to syria Mr.stefan demistura .
– United nations commissioner for human rights_Zeid Read Al_Hussein.
– The independent international investigation commission for Stria , and the united nations human rights council.
– foreign ministers of (The united states of America, federal Russia, The European union, The popular republic of china, The United Kingdom, Egyptian Arab republic, Arab league)
– The syrian, regional and international organizations for human rights.
– The world public opinion and all supporters of justice, freedom and equality values.
The Turkish armed forces in coordination with armed Syrian factions, and extremist radical islamic factions have launched unjustfied military attack that is contradictory to the international law, invading the Turkish _Syrian international borders assaulting on the lands of a neighboring country, without warrant or authorization from the Syrian gevernment , then the occupation of the Syrian region of Afrin which is known historically for its Kurds citizens, westnorth of Aleppo, under the pretext of the protection of “the Turkish national security” and Ankara regime is unable to prove one incident of assault from the secure region toward the Turkish lands, in a hectic endeavour for hitting the historical existence of Kurds and their constructive role on one hand and obtaining invasive greeds of Turkey on the Syrien land on the other hand.
The forces of the Turkish occupation in cooperation with Syrian factions have committed war crimes and crimes against humanity as well as systematic violations since 20/01/2018 until controlling Afrin city in 18/03/2018 till the moment and that can be abbreviated as follows:
Thousands of civilians were killed and wounded, among them Tens of children, women and elderly people, and kidnapping some of them as well as a complete or partial destruction of people’s homes, facilities such as hospitals, mosques, schools, and drinking water plants (The main station which feeds Afrin city)in addition to the enhancement of animal wealth, damaging the environment and forests , devastation of archeologic famous sites as the Temple of Ein_Dara and Brad site (which contains Mar Maron shrine)
– as a result of the indiscriminate bombardment by air and land, at least two hundred thousand of Kurdish citizens have been displaced from Afrin, suffering severely from tragic humanitarian circumstances in Aleppo country side, with the loss of the majority of life requirements, like food, clothing, housing as well as infants milk and medicaments, because of this hard situation, many children and the old have lost their lives.
Tens of thousands who want to come back to their homes are unable because of closure of the return crossings in Afrin district, villages and farms by the occupation authorities and the syrian government doesn’t allow them to go to Aleppo and many traumas of serious infectious diseases have been dacumented such as (tuberculosis) as a result of the lack of health care and the big Population crowding.
– systematic robbery and looting widely including the contents of citizen’s houses, shops and stores, and this is documented in many media and legal reports, on the contrary of the occupation forces assumptions,we assure that the process of Afrin invasion was determind and organised and thousands of the syrian opposition fighters have participated in it, aiming at the impoverishment of local inhabitants and humiliating them, in addition to the continuation of looting and robbery till the moment, and cases of extortion, threat and kidnapping are still continued for getting sums of money.
– Processes of demographic change and forcible settling in Afrin and its countryside are continued, where thousands of families have been settled in the houses of Afrin inhabitants who are prohibited from coming back to their homes.
Most of those families have been brought from Al_Gouta, Domeir and camps of Ezaz and Idleb.
– Intended targeting for the national peculiarity of the region, including the assault on the symbols and features that have a cultural speciality to the Kurdish people and desroying them.
On the day of Afrin city intrusion, the t legendary hero (Kawa smith) has been destroyed which is symbol of Newroz,the struggling symbol against oppression and tyranny. in addition to the removal of Kurdish words from the facades of headquarters and foundations and replacing them by Turkish-Arabic ones.
– randomized and arbitrary detention, cases of torture, kidnapping of journalists and activists from Afrin and leading them to unknown places, including Dean (department of Kurdish literature) at Afrin university “Abed Al-Majeed Sheikho”(67 years) and kidnapping the photographer Mrs:””dil Shan Qatar- Jol” their fate is still unknown, as well as many other young people solely for suspicion of being refusers to the Turkish
Invasion and occupation, this is accompanied by the absence of public and individual liberties, and banning the practising of any civil, cultural and media activity, except for that serves the propaganda of occupation and its policy.
– spreading the culture of racism and hatred, religious and sectarian extremism in society, in addition to launching abusing and extremist epithets at the inhabitants such as “pigs and atheists “to justify their assault and looting their properties. So there is a clear retaliation against the open-minded social quality of Afrin inhabitants and its harmonious social fabric. Izidis Kurds are widely at great risk, because of their ideological and religious beliefs, and they are being compelled to leave their doctrines and adopting the Islamic religion forcibly. As well as making a mockery of their holies and beliefs publicly.
– there is near perfect palsy in economy, industry and farming, where workforce and experiences have migrated… Pyrenees factories, soap manufacturing, clothes workshops, vehicles repairing have been stopped, and most of them were looted, while agricultural activities and services are at their lowest-level, because most tractors and farming equipment have been robbed, olive fields and forests have been damaged because of the Turkish bombardment and battles, in addition to the loss of a big animal wealth. This causes a degrading poverty and high-unemployment rate.
– come down at the level of services generally, and the public health situation in Afrin suffers from indigence and weak capabilities, because of the lack of medical personnel and closure of private hospitals, which have been transferred to be authorized from Turkey, in addition to the stopped service of several specialist clinics and central hospital of Afrin as well, and the scarcity of medicaments and loss of some of them, as well as comedown in the quantity and sorts of foodstuff. Indeed, there is concern related to the spread of diseases because of the accumulation of rubbish and rubble, especially with the coming of summer, although some clinics and hospitalization of some patients to Turkey are available.
– cessation of schools, institutes, Afrin university, music, drawing and institutes of languages since the beginning of Afrin invasion, therefore students have lost their chances for a proper educational achievement as well as developing their hobbies, and children go through the worst, where horror, homelessness and low-health care.
Ladies and gentlemen:
According to the documented incidents and field facts, it’s obvious that the life of Afrin inhabitants under the reign of Turkish occupation is at great risk, as well as the life of expatriates in Al-Shahabaa region, Tal-Refat, Deir-Jamal, Nobul and Al-Zahraa towns and villages of Samaan mountain, Leilun, Robaria, Sherawa… North of Aleppo.
If we compare Afrin situation and its inhabitants today to that prior to aggression and occupation, where security and stability amid violence and devastation in North of Syria and Aleppo, Afrin region was a secure haven for about 500 000 Syrians fled from the hell of violence in Aleppo countryside and Idleb, we realize the size of felony which was committed by the Turkish government and Syrian factions led by it against Afrin and its population, so one who has remained in Afrin, the occupation authorities deal with as a hostage, and Afrin has been charged into a big prison after people’s properties have been looted, and the one who was displaced to save his life, suffers from the worst living and humanitarian circumstances in the open or in primitive camps which have no the simplest health conditions, in this case, the Syrian government and the humanitarian organizations have not presented any important assistance.
The Turkish military and administrative existence in Afrin has all the features and characteristics of the occupation state according to the international law, for the Turkish government has led its army to intrude the lands of a neighbouring country, which is contradictory to the international law and without an authorization from the Syrian government and they have subjected the Syrian territory of Afrin to the control of foreign military forces and raised up the Turkish flag on military headquarters at the borders of Syrian side and depth of the region.
We, in the Kurdish democratic unity party in Syria (Yekîtî) call up your living consciences to perform your duty towards Afrin with its oppressed and threatened inhabitants, and we appeal to the United nations and its organizations for sending special committees to the region to investigate violations and crimes and inspecting the relics of occupation, the sufferings of expatriates and displaced people.
We call upon you to make pressure on the Turkish government to stop all violations and remains of battles as well as extracting the degraded corpses and compensating the damaged people, securing the essentials of life, and the entire commitment to the duties and responsibilities of the occupation authority and the return of Afrin to its owners and Syrian sovereignty.
Those responsibilities provided for in the international treaties and the fundamental rules mentioned in Lahaye manifest 1907(articles from 42 to 56) and the fourth charter of Geneva (articles from 27 to 34 and 47 to 78) as well as provisions of the first additional protocol and the martial international humanitarian law, including:
– the occupied has no sovereignty on land,… occupation is a temporary case.
– the occupation authority has to respect the valid laws on the occupied land, so that they don’t form threat for its security or impediment for applying the international law of occupation.
– the occupied force has to take procedures to restore and secure the order and public safety as can as possible.
– the occupied force has to use all available means for securing the efficiency of sanitary cleanliness and public health and providing people, who are under occupation with food and medical care.
– compelling people in the occupied region for serving in the armed forces of the occupation authority isn’t allowed.
– the collective or individual transportation of people from the occupied land or inside it is banned.
– the process of transporting civilians who belong to the occupation authority to the occupied land, is forbidden, irrespective of whether it is compulsory or willingly.
– the collective punishment is banned.
– taking revenge on protected people and their properties is banned.
– confiscating private possessions by the occupied, is forbidden.
– taking hostages is banned.
– destruction of the enemy properties or seizure is banned, if it doesn’t require absolute military necessity, during the aggression actions.
– destruction of the cultural properties is forbidden.
– people who are accused of a criminal action, get procedures that respect judicial guarantees, recognised internationally, (for instance, they have to be informed of the reason for their detention and directing certain accusations to them, and to be submitted to a just trial as soon as possible).
– employees of the international movement of the red cross and the red crescent, must be allowed to do their humanitarian activities and the potentiality has to be granted to the international committee, particularly for getting to all protected persons, wherever they are, whether they are deprived of their freedom or not.
Keep on backing for fairness and justice
24(April)2018
The Kurdish democratic unity party in Syria (Yekîtî)