Rights Watch: Turkey's cutting off Euphrates waters is war crime

Human rights defender Masoud Ali stressed that cutting off the water supply to the people of the region and the thousands of displaced people is nothing but a war crime and genocide, calling on the international community to take action to stop this crime against the people of the region.

1 May, 2021 01:47

Hasaka - Olfa Haj Mansour

The Turkish occupation state wages a water war on the regions of north and east Syria, and resorts to locking up the Euphrates water, which is one of the main water resources in Syria, and it prevents giving these areas a share of this river’s water, and cuts off this water from time to time.

In this context, human rights defender Masoud Ali, a master's degree in international law, said: “Since the Turkish state launched its attack on the city of Serekaniyê and Girê Spî on October 9, 2019, it has been cutting off water from the regions of northern and eastern Syria, and this is considered a crime against humanity.”

Ali explained that: "The practices of the Turkey's cutting off drinking water from them are nothing but a war crime in accordance with the principles of humanity stipulated in international treaties and agreements."

Ali stated that articles 12 and 13 of international humanitarian law deal with violations committed by states, which legally classify these violations as a crime against humanity according to the International Criminal Court, as it is called genocide, according to the United Nations Convention of 1948.

Ali added: “The Turkish occupation state says that it works according to the laws, but what it is doing today in northern and eastern Syria in terms of cutting off water, violates international laws, and what it does shows to the whole world that Turkey is an occupied country that does not recognize the laws without any sanctions by the United Nations and international courts. "

Ali pointed out that: “The law of war confirms that if there are conflicts and wars between two countries, it is necessary to benefit from the common natural resources such as water and to be distributed fairly among the two countries, but Turkey has not done so. Rather, since 2019, the water has been cut off from the city of Hasakah more than 13 Once and every time the cutting period lasts for more than a month. "

In the conclusion of his speech, human rights defender Masoud Ali stressed the need for international action by the United Nations and the Security Council to stop the crimes of the Turkish occupation, which threatens the lives of about a million people, stressing: "If Turkey continues to cut off water, the region will soon witness a humanitarian catastrophe."

(A)

ANHA