Recommendations in final statement of Forum "Ethnic Cleansing and Demographic Change in Afrin"

QAMISHLO

The International Forum on "Ethnic Cleansing and Demographic Change in Afrin" concluded its works with a final session releasing a final statement containing a number of recommendations.

The statement was read by Dr. Farah Saber, the Doctor in Modern and Contemporary History, specializing in Iranian, Turkish and Middle Eastern issues, and a lecturer at the University of Baghdad

The text of the statement:

After the Turkish occupation and mercenaries of Afrin, Rojava Center for Strategic Studies, with the participation of a number of documentation centers and human rights organizations, documented the violations of the names of the civilian victims of martyrs and injuries resulting from the use of poisonous and internationally banned gases, as well as the destruction of homes, villages and property.

Moreover, it documented the systematic bombardment of medical staff, public facilities and vital places such as schools, bakeries, drinking water systems, archaeological sites and convoys of solidarity from the north of Syria to Afrin.

The Turkish state and its mercenaries, after their occupation of Afrin, imposed an occupation reality in order to annex part of the Syrian geography. The occupation authorities and their mercenaries continued to violate the original inhabitants of the region by forcibly displacing them through kidnapping, killing on identity, theft and seizure of property, the history of Ottoman politics through the imposition of the Turkish language and curriculum, as well as the change of the names of villages and towns and the destruction of monuments that symbolize the identity of the civilized region in the sense of re-engineering demographics in accordance with the policy of Turkey has been replaced.

Taking into account the danger of the policy of ethnic cleansing and demographic change in light of the international silence practiced by the occupation authorities in Afrin and the rest of the northern Syrian territory, this prompted the center to discuss the need to convene an international forum to expose the practices of the occupation and policies against the residents of Afrin forced displacement and destruction of houses and confiscation of property and the imposition of ransoms, on the civilians to make the voice of the people of Afrin heard to the world public opinion and document the practices carried out by the Turkish occupier and its mercenaries in order to inform international organizations and human rights bodies of these inhuman and unfair practices against Afrin people.

The forum is divided into several political, military, historical, cultural, economic and human rights axes. It was discussed through research and studies involving academic, intellectual and political figures who presented their views on the occupation and its practices and ways of dealing with it. As well as the participation of many figures from different parts of the world through the video and recorded videos whose conditions did not help to attend where the forum axes were discussed.

After extensive discussions, it was agreed on a number of recommendations to move the political, legal and media at the international level to counter the consequences of the Turkish occupation of Afrin and the bad consequences of this invasion, which contradicts all international laws and humanitarian norms.

Recommendations

1-Calling for the convening of forums and subsequent conferences in the countries of regional and international weight until removing the occupation from Afrin, and the center showed reediness to adopt these events.

2-Forming a committee to follow up the decisions and recommendations of the forum from different jurisdictions and nationalities.

. Establishing a center to document Turkish violations and practices in Afrin 3-

4-Escalating diplomatic efforts regarding Afrin in official and non-official organizations and continuing to communicate with the decision-making countries regarding Syria.

5-Forming a legal committee to bring the cases before the competent international courts and document violations by international human rights organizations and organizations of the international community.

6-Establishing an information center whose mission is to expose the violations of the Turkish state through various media.

7-Supporting the procedures and lines that ensure the return of the residents of Afrin to their areas, and the restoration of their property through all legitimate means guaranteed by international law and humanitarian conventions.

8-Calling upon the Kurdish and Syrian people and all friendly peoples to intensify their efforts through various events with the aim of liberating Afrin and calling for the proclamation of a world day of solidarity with it.

9-Calling for an air embargo on the northern regions of Syria to prevent the recurrence of the experience of Afrin.

10-Documenting the names of the Turkish military leaders and their mercenaries, which led their aggressive campaign against Afrin to bring them to international justice.

11-Appealing to international bodies and humanitarian organizations to provide the required and urgent support to the displaced in al-Shahba canton.

A.H

ANHA