IDPs protest in front of UNHCR demanding right to safe return to their homes

The Afrin Social Association and the Afrin and Shahba Displaced Persons Affairs Administration organized a protest on Saturday in front of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) in the city of Qamishli. During the protest, they delivered a statement regarding the ongoing humanitarian violations in Afrin and the Sheikh Maqsoud and Ashrafieh neighborhoods of Aleppo. Several members of the Association and the Afrin Displaced Persons Affairs Administration participated in the statement.

The statement was read in English by Rizgar Lulu, a member of the Afrin and Shahba Displaced Persons Affairs Administration in Qamishlo, and in Arabic by Laila Hussein, the co-chair of the Afrin and Shahba Displaced Persons Affairs Administration.

The statement called on the interim transitional authorities in Damascus to fully commit to implementing Article 5 of the March 10 agreement signed between the Commander-in-Chief of the Syrian Democratic Forces, Mazloum Abdi, and the Syrian Interim President, Ahmad al-Sharaa. This agreement stipulates ensuring the safe and voluntary return of displaced Syrians to their cities and villages and providing them with full protection.

The statement noted the ongoing daily human rights violations in the Afrin region, including the confiscation of property and the oppression of residents, as well as the practices of armed factions affiliated with the Ministries of Defense and Interior in the transitional government.

It considered that the policy of procrastination and delay pursued by the authorities in Damascus is deepening the Syrian crisis and increasing the suffering of civilians.

In its statement, the Association and the Afrin and Shahba Displaced Persons Affairs Department called on the United Nations, human rights organizations, and international and regional bodies to exert maximum pressure on the relevant authorities to ensure the implementation of the provisions of the March 10 agreement without delay.

It affirmed the right of the people of Afrin to a safe and dignified voluntary return, to manage their own affairs, and to represent their will in the Aleppo Provincial Council.

The statement concluded by emphasizing that adherence to the March 10 agreement represents the only way to avoid further tragedies and maintain civil peace, and that war will not serve any party and will only exacerbate the suffering of the Syrian people.

The statement was then officially delivered to the UNHCR office in Qamishlo.

ANHA