Syrian women face rising violence in Suwayda

 The Syrian people are once again facing extremist ideologies, from the attacks by ISIS mercenaries on Kobani and Raqqa, to the Turkish occupation’s attacks on Afrin, Sere Kaniye, and Tal Abyad, and extending to the massacres in the Syrian coast, rural Damascus, and Suwayda.

The city of Raqqa witnessed one of the most horrific massacres against humanity by ISIS mercenaries, particularly targeting women and children. The city’s central roundabout was dubbed “Hell Roundabout” due to the gruesome scenes of beheadings and because it became a market for selling women, especially Yazidi women.

In Afrin, occupied by Turkey and its mercenaries since 2018, inhumane crimes against women and children are committed daily, with no international action to stop these crimes or hold perpetrators accountable. Among these crimes was the mutilation of the body of Barin Kobani, a fighter in the Women’s Protection Units, on February 1, 2018.

Similarly, mercenaries of the Turkish occupation mutilated the body of Hevrin Khalaf, the Secretary-General of the Future Syria Party, during Turkey’s offensive on Sere Kaniye and Gire Spi on October 9, 2019. Following the fall of the Baath regime on December 8, 2024, and the establishment of a new transitional government in Syria, areas under its control, particularly the Syrian coast and Suwayda, are experiencing a state of lawlessness and severe human rights violations.

Reports indicate thousands have been killed, with hundreds of cases of women being kidnapped in the coastal areas and Hama. These scenes are recurring in Suwayda today.

Local sources reported the killing of Dr. Faten Halal with a gunshot to the head while heading to her work at the National Hospital in the city. In Al-Dour village, many women, including Fawzia Fakhruddin Al-Sharani, who took a courageous stand defending her neighborhood and village, faced brutal attacks.

This comes amid escalating violations by the transitional government forces in Syria, which have carried out executions of entire families and caused injuries to dozens of women and children due to shelling and random gunfire on residential areas, according to medical testimonies.

However, in Kobani, the will of Kurdish women turned the tide against ISIS mercenaries. This was exemplified by the martyrdom operation carried out by fighter Arin Mirkan on October 5, 2014, which prevented mercenaries from entering the city. This calls for Syrian women to unite their ranks and organize to stand against these attacks.

a.k

ANHA