SDC calls on Turkey to give up hostile policies and deliver martyrs' bodies  

A statement was released today by the SDC on the grave that the Turkish state and affiliated groups alleged to home bodies killed at the hands of the Peoples' Protection Units, the YPG, prior to the Turkish occupation of the city in 2018 adding bodies are of victims fell to the barbaric shelling carried out by the Turkish occupation army days prior to Turkish occupation.

''the so-called Local Police affiliated to the Turkish occupation army in the city of Afrin announced it discovered a mass grave homing bodies of tens of victims whose identities were not verified holding Syrian Democratic Forces, the4 SDF, responsible on the ground the city was under its control when bodies were interred. Bodies exhumed and displayed on media outlets  in a dehumanizing and degrading manner. Hours later, Wali of Hatay accused the SDF of committing a 'massacre' against people that buried collectively, then it was the turn of Turkish Defence Ministry to claim in a well-organized manner a war crime was committed. 

Details of the incident were followed closely by the Syrian Democratic Council that was eager to verify the truth and involved parties in this crime contacting different bodies to get any useful information on the incident. Hours later it was shown that the grave was of victims fell to the Turkish military onslaught carried out by Turkish Army aided by radical factions that used every possible types of weapons to occupy Afrin and deport its people settling instead mercenaries' families.

According to available information, they are 71 martyrs, identities of 40 are known, including 5 civilians and 31 remains unverified due to the difficult times then. 

The SDC renew its condemnation of the crime and decrys the misinformation adopted by Turkey to subdue SDF and sacrifices made and all bids that seek to attach such accusations to this force that sacrificed dearly in standing up to terror groups.  

We also decry coordinated activity between the so-called Local Police in Afrin city and Wali Hatay and the Turkish Defence Ministry that turned into a podium running grave media projects to mislead and stir up the public opinion.

The SDC calls on Turkish Government to give up this behavior and to reconsider its hostile policies towards the Kurdish people and to offer an apology to martyrs families on exhuming their sons and the desecration that was caused bodies of victims as well to deliver bodies to their families to be re-interred decently. 

We condole with the families of victims and martyrs calling on the international community to create a fact finding committee and to bear responsibility regarding all violations and crimes against humanity perpetrated by mercenary factions attached to Turkey and to exert efforts for IDPs to return home as well as all properties and belongings to return to its legal owners and to stop the demographic change taking place''.

L..A..

ANAH