War crimes against Syrians amid the absence of justice, fairness

On a daily basis, organizations specialized in documenting violations monitor crimes committed in various regions of Syria, the most prominent of which are those committed in the areas occupied by Turkey and its mercenaries, “Afrin, Girê Spi/Tal Abyad, and Serêkaniyê.”

According to documented statistics at the date of preparing the report, the Turkish occupation army and its mercenaries killed more than 612 civilians in occupied Afrin, including 500 who were killed as a result of the Turkish bombing and its mercenaries, 82 who were killed under torture, and 696 others were injured, including about 303 children and 214 women, and 214 others were killed in Afrin after its occupation with mines and booby- trapped vehicles.

The Turkish occupation state cut down more than 315,600 olive trees and other forest trees in order to trade their firewood, in addition to burning more than 12 thousand olive trees and various forest trees, and burning more than a third of the area allocated for agriculture, which is estimated at more than 11,600 thousand hectares since its occupation of Afrin.

The Turkish occupation army and its mercenaries seized 9,340 fruit and olive groves, among others, in addition to seizing thousands of forcibly displaced civilian homes, converting dozens of them into prisons, detention centers, and headquarters, and trading in them, buying and selling, after more than 300,000 civilians were forcibly displaced from Afrin and its villages since March 18. 2018.

According to what was confirmed by the Afrin Antiquities Directorate, the Turkish occupation army excavated and stole Afrin’s antiquities in about 78 archaeological hills, and destroyed more than 28 archaeological sites, warehouses, and more than 15 religious shrines for various beliefs and religions, in addition to bulldozing many cemeteries and converting one of them into a livestock market.

As for what happened in the areas of Sere Kaniye and Girê Spi/Tal Abyad, the number of kidnapping cases documented by the “Ta’azur” Association for Victims since its occupation in October 2019 amounted to no less than 478 people, including 64 women and 36 children.

At least 293 cases of torture of detainees were documented in Turkey’s prisons in the region and the prisons of its mercenaries. At least 5 of them died as a result of the torture they were subjected to, according to the association.

In addition to the displacement of more than 200,000 people from Serêkaniyê distributed among the Washukani and Serêkaniyê camps in al-Hasakah, and others took refuge with their families in cities and towns in Jazira canton.

ANHA agency documented the kidnapping by the Turkish occupation mercenaries of 9 sheikhs and notables of the Albu Assaf clan in the town of Ali Bajliya in the Girê Spi/Tal Abyad countryside, including an elderly man sick with a terminal illness (cancer), in addition to the kidnapping of 15 women, at separate intervals, one of whom was carrying a child aged 15 years. She was 40 days old. Although she sought refuge with one of the sheikhs and notables of the region, she was kidnapped.

The Turkish occupation forcibly displaced more than 100,000 people from Girê Spi/Tal Abyad, distributed in the cities of Raqqa canton, Tabqa canton, and their countryside, and suffering from difficult living and economic conditions, while 6,450 of them live in the Girê Spi camp, which was established by the Autonomous Administration near the village of Tal al-Saman in The northern countryside of Raqqa on November 22, 2019.

Human rights activist Farhad Baqir confirms that the above statistics “fall into the category of war crimes, and are considered a violation of the land and the right of the people and property.”

He added, "The Turkish occupation state and its mercenaries are confiscating the property of residents in the occupied areas and forcibly displacing them after seizing their homes and displacing more than thousands of families, depriving them of their most basic rights."

Lawyer Baqir believes that the responsibility of documenting these crimes and violations, in addition to achieving justice for Syrians and restoring their rights, is the responsibility of international human rights organizations, especially the United Nations.

The crimes committed by Turkey and its mercenaries against the people of the Girê Spi/Tal Abyad area are still fresh in the mind of the displaced person from the village of Hammam al-Turkman in the Girê Spi countryside, Shaha al-Assaf, who is still awaiting the return to her home and justice after she was displaced from her area due to the occupation in 2019.

Shaha says, "The Turkish occupation state entered with its vehicles and tanks and spread terror in the hearts of children and adults. They expelled us from our homes and forcibly abandoned us while we watched our homes being robbed and plundered."

Shaha Al-Assaf explained, "We agreed to live in tents so as not to be at the mercy of the Turkish occupation. We are still waiting for the return of our property and justice, and I hope to return to my home and my place after the occupiers are removed from our land."

The notable of the Shuaib clan in Raqqa canton, Ali Shuaib, said about what the areas occupied by Turkey and its mercenaries are witnessing: “They occupied this land, displaced its people, stole its money, and plundered its homes, and nothing was left behind that they destroyed.”

Al-Shuaib stressed the necessity of liberating Syrian lands from the Turkish occupation army and its mercenaries, the return of Syrian lands to the Syrians, and achieving justice for the Syrians in holding the Turkish state accountable.

T/ Satt.

ANHA