Violations in Serê Kaniyê: 72 missing, over 1,200 crimes, violations

The Serê Kaniyê Displaced Persons Committee issued a statement today ahead of the sixth anniversary of the occupation of Serê Kaniyê. The statement was read by committee member Maysaa Al-Ali at Serê Kaniyê Camp in the city of Hasakah, in the presence of a number of displaced people.

The statement called for the immediate withdrawal of the Turkish occupying forces and their mercenaries from Serê Kaniyê and demanded a safe and dignified return of the displaced to their homes, under genuine constitutional and international guarantees ensuring their safety and rights. It also called for holding accountable those responsible for war crimes and violations against civilians through independent international justice mechanisms.

The statement further urged the return of properties to their legitimate owners, an end to systematic demographic changes, and pressure on the Syrian interim government to implement the provisions of the March 10 Agreement, including the return of displaced persons.

It emphasized the need for national forces to overcome their disputes, work seriously to end occupations, and stressed that youth and activists should maintain identity, belonging, and collective memory, preventing the erasure of Serê Kaniyê and other occupied areas.

The committee also released an annual report documenting the crimes committed by the Turkish occupation and its mercenaries in Serê Kaniyê, read by committee member Fatima Maskani.

The report documented ongoing daily violations in the city and its countryside, including:

- Confiscation of homes and agricultural lands and looting of public and private property.

- Arbitrary arrests, enforced disappearances, and torture in detention centers run by Turkish-backed armed factions.

- Forced settlement of armed families and displaced persons from other areas within and outside Syria, aiming to erase the original demographic identity of the region.

- A new indirect method of seizing property and land from displaced people has recently emerged, including:

- Attempting to legalize purchases by enticing displaced people with large sums of money to sell their land and homes.

- Holding meetings and coordinating between faction representatives, illegitimate local councils, and local elders to persuade displaced people to sell.

- Attempting to give a false “legal” appearance to property transfers, even though these actions occur under occupation and lack any legal or ethical legitimacy.

The report stressed that these practices are part of a systematic policy to cement demographic change and entrench the occupation through measures that appear civilian but are exploitative and coercive.

It noted that families forcibly displaced since 2019 remain denied the right to return to their homes, as Turkish occupation mercenaries continue to alter the city and its original population through imposed authorities and inhumane practices against civilians.

The report also documented ongoing economic and social crimes and violations in the city and countryside, including:

- Theft of agricultural resources and water.

- Looting public and private property and diverting revenues to factional entities.

- Using villages and farms as military bases and training centers for mercenaries, in clear violation of international law and Geneva Conventions protecting civilians during armed conflicts.

The report confirmed that Turkish authorities seek to consolidate administrative and military control over the occupied area by appointing local councils under their direct supervision from bordering Turkish provinces, linking the city administratively and economically to Turkish cities such as Ceylanpinar and Urfa, in an attempt to impose a new reality far from Syrian sovereignty.

It highlighted that Turkey’s actions in occupied areas of Serê Kaniyê and Girê Spî constitute clear evidence of human rights violations, war crimes, and crimes against humanity under international law and UN conventions.

The Serê Kaniyê Displaced Persons Committee called on the international community and human rights organizations to fulfill their responsibilities to protect the indigenous population, pressure to stop ongoing violations against civilians, and ensure the safe and dignified return of displaced persons in accordance with international law.

Statistics in the report confirmed that 87% of the original population has been displaced, with only 44 Kurds remaining in Serê Kaniyê and Girê Spî.

The number of families settled in Serê Kaniyê by mercenaries reached 3,200, including 75 families affiliated with the Turkish occupation and ISIS.

Mercenaries seized 6,300 homes, 1,900 commercial shops, and nearly all Kurdish-owned agricultural land, amounting to 98%.

The number of partially razed villages is five, while one village, Ain Hissan, was completely razed and converted into military training centers and camps.

65 villages were entirely depopulated of their original residents, and five villages were used for drug cultivation by mercenaries.

The city and countryside witnessed 15 cases of sexual assault, 1,275 cases of arrest, disappearance, field execution, and torture, 72 missing civilians, 130 incidents of fighting among mercenaries, 20 killings at the Turkish border, and 75 explosions in the city.

A-H 

ANHA