Afrin under occupation (142) special

التقرير الاسبوعي ـ عفرين تحت الاحتلال 142 خاص

مترجم إلى اللغة الانكليزية 

Afrin under occupation (142) special:

Systematic demographic change that rises to the level of ethnic cleansing against the Kurds 

(figures and facts about settlement)

The war launched by the Turkish army, accompanied by more than / 20 / thousand armed jihadist militias associated with the Syrian-Brotherhood coalition against Afrin in the first quarter of 2018, shortly after massive media and military mobilizations and preparations, under the name of “Olive Branch” and under the pretext of “defending Turkish national security” and “fighting terrorist organizations, defeating separatists, returning and resettling Syrian refugees…”, and with religious justifications “fighting infidelity and atheism, spreading the true religion…”, and under the banner “Revolution and Jihad” … 

It aimed at occupying the region and ending its self-administration, uprooting its Kurdish people from their historical roots, obliterating their national identity, fighting their culture and language, squandering their fabric, erasing their cultural heritage, excessive property and development capabilities, with various tools and methods, and by practicing violations and committing war crimes and crimes against humanity; During three years, Afrin transformed from a relatively safe area and was witnessing a natural development in all aspects of public life to an insecure area, dominated by chaos and tension, so the security and humanitarian situation worsened, and was deteriorating from bad to worse.

One of the most prominent objectives of the occupation was the application of systematic demographic change (changing a group of population characteristics, which are quantitative characteristics, including “population density, distribution, growth, size, population structure…”, and qualitative characteristics, including “development, culture, education, nutrition, wealth…”) According to the following:

Firstly: changing the demographics:

The area consists of Afrin city and seven districts (Afrin Center, Jenderes, Shiye / Sheikh Al-Hadid, Mabata / Maabatli, Rajo, Bulbul, Sharra / Sharran) and more than / 360 / villages and towns and about / 40 / farms, and until the end of 2017 (the number of its indigenous people was approximately 700 thousand people, more than half of them emigrated in search of work opportunities, and about 325 thousand people remained in it, while about 300 thousand displaced persons – with the changing movement – from the Syrian interior during the years of the crisis and remained more than / 30 / thousands of them are residents). 

And the percentage of Kurds in the region decreased from / 95% / to less than / 25% /; and that is through:

Killing and causing it:

Among them are the elderly, women and children, as hundreds of Afrin’s sons fell into the ranks of the People’s Protection Units and Women YPG-YPJ, and more than / 300 / civilians were martyred victims during the aggression on the area by land and air, and about / 165 / martyrs and desecrated civilians who lost their lives under the occupation since March 18, 2018 AD, and dozens have died under the pressure of the harsh conditions imposed. Thus, all their families lost loved ones, including those who were separated, and their families lost their breadwinners.

Forced displacement:

Forced migration from Afrin towards the displacement areas north of Aleppo, March 2018

Under the pressure of the invasion attacks launched by the Turkish army and its mercenaries with various types of weapons, a large displacement movement took place, starting from the villages towards the center of Afrin and then outside it. 

The occupation caused the forcible displacement of more than 250 thousand people and prevented nearly 200 thousand of them from returning. 

The occupation authorities closed their crossings to their homes by  as of 4/4/2018, so they remained displaced in areas of displacement under the control of the Syrian army (some villages of Jebel Laylon, the towns of Nubl, Zahraa, Dirjamal, and Tal Rafaat, and the villages and towns of al-Shahba …) – north of Aleppo, including Those who fled to Aleppo, Kobani and Jazira regions – east of the Euphrates, and entire villages were closed to the return of their inhabitants, either by taking military bases or for their occupation by the families of the militants (“Jilbere, Koblee, Dermashmash, Zreikat, Baseleh, Khalta” – Rubaria, “Chia, Darwish” – Raju, “Qastal Jundu, Paflon, Baarava” – Sharra, “Haftar, Shekhorzih” – Bulbul…), especially since the exodus from the region continues because of the bad conditions, albeit in low numbers; The number of the remaining people of Afrin inside the region is currently estimated at about / 150 / thousand people, most of them are from the old age groups.

The displaced village of Gilbar – Jebel Liloun.

Arbitrary arrests, kidnappings, killings, harassment and pressure against the remaining Kurds continue, and their movement continues to be restricted, striking the basics of their lives, bullying and superiority over them to push them to emigrate and leave their homes and properties.

Emiratisation:

A typical settlement village project in a mountainous location near the village of “Hajj Hasna” – Jenderes, April 2021 AD.

More than / 450 / thousand people have been resettled from: Arab and Turkmen recruited people who were transferred from the countryside of Damascus, Hama, Homs, Idlib and western Aleppo, according to Astana deals and understandings between Turkey, Russia and Iran, within the homes and properties of the people of Afrin, who were forcibly seized and in camps established near (Afrin city, The village of Muhammadiyah – Jenderes, the village of Afraz – Maabatli, the town of Raju, the town of Bulbul, the village of Kafarjana, the village of Dirsowan … And recently, the occupation authorities began working on building / 7 / model settlement villages for the purpose of housing the recruits in them, relying on organizations linked to them, militias and networks of the Muslim Brotherhood funded and implemented, and through the Turkish Disaster and Emergency Management Foundation – AFAD, and Qatari and Kuwaiti funds, which are located in (South The village of “Shadireh” – Shirawa, “Sheikh Muhammad” mountain north of the town of Kafr Safra-Jenderes, Mount “Çiyayê Şewitî” – Jabal Qazqli road north of the town of Kafr Safra-Jenderes, the site of “Legh-Lêçe” between the villages of “Qarmetlaq and Jaqle Tahtani” Sheye / Sheikh Al-Hadid, near the clinic in the town of Shiye / Sheikh Al-Hadid, a mountain location near the village of “Hajj Hasan” – Jenderes, near the village of “Khalta” – Sherawa).

A model settlement village project at a site near the village of “Khalta” – Jebel Liloun, April 2021 AD.

Here are some estimated settlement statistics for some villages, towns and cities:

– In Afrin city center, there were more than / 100 / thousand indigenous inhabitants, and after the occupation, about / 30 / thousand people remained, and about / 80 / thousands of the applicants were resettled.

– The center of Jenderes sub-district is composed of about / 5 / thousand homes, and there were about / 20 / thousand indigenous inhabitants, and about / 10 / thousands of them remained, and about / 18 / thousands of the applicants were resettled.

– Shiye / Sheikh Al-Hadid district center consists of about / 1200 / houses, and there were about / 4800 / indigenous inhabitants, and about / 2500 / people remained, and about / 6 / thousands of the applicants were resettled.

– The center of the Mabata sub-district / Maabatli district is composed of about / 1200 / houses, and there were about / 4800 / indigenous inhabitants, and about / 2 / thousands of them remained, and / 7500 / persons of the recruited persons were settled.

– The center of Rajo sub-district is composed of about 1500 houses, and about 6 thousand people were indigenous, and about 1200 people remained, and about 7500 people were resettled.

– The center of Bulbul sub-district is composed of about 750 houses, and 3 thousand inhabitants were indigenous, of whom about 220 remained, and about 3750 of the recruited persons were resettled.

– Sharra sub-district center / Sharran consists of about / 400 / houses, in which about / 1600 / people were indigenous, and about / 400 / people remained, and about / 1500 / people of the recruited people were resettled.

– The town of Jalameh consists of about / 1200 / houses, of which about / 4800 / people were indigenous, and about / 2500 / people remained, and about / 10 / thousands of the recruits were resettled.

– The town of Maidan Akbis is composed of about 450 houses, of which there were about 1800 original inhabitants, of whom about 500 remained, and about two thousand of the recruits were resettled.

– The village of Dersowan consists of about 450 houses, and there are about 1800 original inhabitants in it, and about 500 people remain, and about two thousand of the recruited people have been resettled.

– The village of Iska is made up of about 310 homes, of which about 1250 people were indigenous, and about 400 people remained, and a thousand people were resettled from the recruits.

– The town of Kafr Safra is made up of about 1200 houses, of which about 4800 people were indigenous, and about 1300 people remained, and about two thousand people were resettled.

– The village of Tal Sallour consists of about / 80 / houses, of which about 320 people were indigenous, and about two hundred people remained, and about two hundred people were resettled.

– Araba village, consisting of about / 345 / houses, contained about / 1400 / indigenous inhabitants, and about 800 / of them remained, and about / 500 / persons of the recruited persons were resettled.

– The village of Qibar is made up of about 300 houses, in it there were about 1200 original inhabitants, and about 570 people remained, and about 500 people were resettled.

– The village of Basouta is made up of about 800 houses, of which about 3200 people were indigenous, and about 1800 people remained, and about 1500 of the recruited people were resettled.

– Burj Abdalou village is composed of about / 200 / houses, of which there were about / 800 / indigenous inhabitants, and about / 150 / of them remained, and about / 400 / of the recruits were resettled.

– The village of Shengile consists of about / 120 / houses, of which about / 480 / people were indigenous, and about / 150 / of them remained, and about / 500 / people of the recruits were resettled.

– The Yazidi village of Baflon consists of about / 80 / houses, in which about 250 people were indigenous and none of them remained, and about 750 people were resettled.

– The village of Chaqmaq Kabir consists of about / 300 / houses. About 1200 inhabitants were in it, and about 280 people remained. About two thousand of the recruited people were resettled.

– The village of Qopi consists of about / 122 / houses, in which about / 500 / people were indigenous, and about / 130 / people remained, and about / 600 / people of the recruits were resettled.

– The Yazidi village of Faqira consists of about / 110 / houses, of which about 440 people were indigenous, and about / 130 / people remained, and about / 325 / people of the recruits were resettled.

– The village of Qudah consists of about / 250 / houses, in which about a thousand people were indigenous, and about / 240 / people remained, and about / 850 / persons of the recruited persons were resettled.

– The village of Agjalye consists of about 120 houses. About 480 people were indigenous, and about 300 people remained, and 350 people were resettled.

  – Zarka village consists of about / 60 / houses, and there were about / 250 / indigenous inhabitants, and about / 120 / of them remained, and the neighboring village of Jubana composed of about / 50 / houses, in which there were about / 200 / indigenous inhabitants and some of them remained. / 60 / people, and about / 500 / people were resettled in the two villages.

-The village of Hosse/ Mirkan consists of about / 300 / houses, in which there were about / 1200 / indigenous inhabitants, and about / 700 / people remained, and about / 250 / of the applicants were resettled.

– Ashkan Sharqi village consists of about / 100 / houses, in which about 400 / inhabitants were indigenous, and about a hundred people remained, and about / 4 / thousands of the recruited people were settled in it and in a camp next to it.

– The village of Kobalake consists of about / 55 / houses, of which there were about / 220 / indigenous inhabitants, and about / 75 / of them remained, and about / 400 / of the recruits were resettled.

– The village of Dumlia consists of about 280 houses. About 1120 inhabitants were in it, while about 350 people remained. About a thousand of the recruited people were resettled.

Seizure of properties:

Afrin Market, with shops seized by armed militias, May 2018.

Since the first day of the military incursion, homes, civil and administrative facilities, infrastructure and public facilities have been targeted. Thousands of residential homes, a public poultry facility, a livestock slaughterhouse, mosques, schools, medical centers, bakeries, a main station for storing and packing fuel, a facility for repairing heavy machinery and olives presses have been destroyed.

In addition to the destruction or sabotage of public and private power supply networks, transformers and generators, ground and wireless communication networks and centers, drinking water stations and tanks, irrigation stations and networks associated with the Maydanki Dam and its control panels, warehouses and lounges. 

In addition, the theft and general plunder of private and public property, depleting the livelihoods of the people, and severely narrowing job and business opportunities for them Also, real estate and agricultural property in the area were re-registered in order to fully inventory and seize the absentees’ properties (exceeding 70% of real estate and 50% of agricultural property), and imposing more taxes and royalties on the rest (10-20%). 

The registration processes also contain errors and cases of fraud, and illegal appropriation, in light of the authorities ’intention to confiscate property in the absence of a large percentage of the true owners, and the loss of many of their documents.

Second: Changing the identity and privacy of the region and fighting the culture and language of its people:

The archaeological hill of Aendara before and after the bombing by the Turkish army, the first quarter of 2018.

Archaeological Tel Dromeya – Maabatli, before and after digging and sweeping.

The Yazidi Sheikh Hamid shrine – near the village of Qastal Jundu, before and after the destruction.

During the war, the Turkish bombing targeted historical archaeological sites (Aendara, Hori, Teqlekeh, Simon, Brad, Tal Jenderes …) and sabotaging its monuments, so valuable and damaged archaeological parts were removed, and the sculptures of Tal Aendara from basalt stone were turned into rubble by the bombing, and later the militia stole the mighty basalt lion, and turned the hill into a military area, and Tal Jenderes was converted into a Turkish military base. 

Since April 2018 CE, many historical shrines have been exhumed (Sheikh Moss Anzali – Meydana, Qarah Jorne – Sharra, Berbouche – Maabatli, Sheikh Abdul Rahman – Kani Korkeh village, the Roman shrine – Nabi Hori, Yazidi shrines “Sheikh Rakab, Sheikh Hamid, Sheikh Sidi Sheikh Hussein, the king of Adi, Chil Khaneh ”) and vandalizing them, digging and sweeping dozens of archaeological sites and hills and stealing their treasures and transporting them to Turkey under the supervision of its intelligence, including (Nabi Hori and its Roman shrine, Brad, the“ Turinde ”hills, Burj Abdalo, Qibar, Zarafkeh, Ketekh, Brabaush , Duromia, Gurnaz, Gamrouk, Dersowan ”), some of them are listed on the World Heritage List of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization“ UNESCO ”. 

The Roman pyramid “Nabi Hori” shrine and the mosque next to it were converted into a Turkish-Ottoman landmark.

The destroyed “Kawa the Mourning” statue in Afrin, March 18, 2018.

The statue of “Kawa Al-Haddad”, the legendary Kurdish symbol of Nowruz, was destroyed and other monuments and symbols were changed, as well as changing the names of squares and villages with Arab and Turkish names (Kawa roundabout = Olive Branch roundabout, Nowruz roundabout = Saladin roundabout, national roundabout = President Erdogan’s square, Kutana village = Zafer Obasi, Qorneh village = Onder Obasi, Qastal Miqdad village = Seljuk Obasi, Afrin Hospital = Shifa Hospital), Kurdish words and writings have been removed from most of the facades of headquarters and institutions, as well as road signboards and signs of the names of villages and towns, and replaced by Turkish and Arabic.

“President Erdogan’s Square” – Afrin, April 2018

Turkey and the Syrian-Brotherhood coalition and its interim government and the militias loyal to them are promoting the new Arabic name “Olive Branch – the name of the invasion” instead of the original historical name “Afrin-Afirîn / Efrîn”, and by naming some institutions with it (Directorate of Education in the Olive Branch region Olive Branch Chamber of Agriculture,…), and withholding the name Afrin from administrative circulation as much as possible with linking the area administratively to the Turkish state of Hatay.

The Turkish flag has been raised on the minarets of mosques, shrines, schools, parks, institution buildings, squares and sites with their historical and cultural symbolism, and on administrative and military headquarters.

The Turkish flag in a handbook for the Kurdish language is being taught in Afrin.

The Arab educational curricula of the “Coalition Provisional Government” were adopted, with the imposition of the Turkish language and the increase in religious education quotas, without seriously adopting the Kurdish language and teaching it to a small extent in some schools. 

In addition to the total or partial destruction of schools during the attack, some of them were converted to military headquarters, and the leading industrial secondary school, university, specialized institutes and many schools were emptied of their equipment and their contents completely stolen.

As for education it became poor in most villages, while the primary, middle and secondary curricula during administration the previous autonomy was given in more than / 300 / schools in the Kurdish language, and tens of thousands of textbooks, cultural books, publications, newspapers and magazines were printed in the Kurdish language or concerned with Kurdish culture, as this dynamic that revived the region’s peculiarity and heritage was canceled.

The cemetery of “Martyr Sido, Kfar Safra” – Jendires, before and after the destruction.

Three martyrs’ graves were destroyed (“the martyr Rafiq” in the village of Matina, “the martyr Sido” in the town of Kafr Safra, and “the martyr Avesta” in the village of Kfarshile), and the graves of well-known Kurdish figures (Nuri Dersami, Kamal Hanan, Arif Khalil Sheikho…), as well as the graves with Kurdish language writings on its gravestones.

Because of the prevailing atmosphere of terrorism and hostile practices against the Kurds, for three years they refrained from reviving their national, social and religious events in the usual normal way as before, such as the occasions (March 8 International Women’s Day, March 12 Kurdish Martyr’s Day, March 16, the anniversary of the Halabja massacre, March 21. Nowruz, April 22, the day of the Kurdish press, June 14, the day of the establishment of the first Kurdish political party in Syria …). Most of the wedding halls, cafeterias, institutes of music and plastic art, and shelters for the handicapped, orphans, deaf and dumb, have been closed or taken over by militias to operate them for their benefit.

The Yazidi Kurds were subjected to double persecution (calling them infidels, emptying some of their villages, “Baflun, Qastal Jindo…”, preventing them from practicing their religious rites and celebrating their religious events, exhuming and destroying their shrines and the graves of their dead, forcing some of them to attend mosques). 

They lived in more than / 20 / villages and in the city of Afrin, and only about / 5 / thousands of them out of / 25 / thousand people remained, due to forced displacement and previous migration, while they were fully enjoying their freedom and rights under the previous Autonomous Administration. 

They constitute the main historical root of the Kurds, their heritage and culture, as the jihadist militias pose a threat to the entirety of their lives.

A personal identity card granted by the occupation authorities compulsorily

The people of Afrin and those brought to it through the local councils were forced to possess personal identification cards granted by the occupation authorities in both Turkish and Arabic, and neglect the official Syrian ID card, with the aim of melting everyone into a new community melting pot with a new Ottoman identity.

“Dar Al Khalil” mosque – “Burjkeh” village – Jenderes, March 2021 AD.

There is an active militant religious movement mixed with new Ottoman ideas, under the supervision of the intelligence and the Turkish “endowment of religion”, among the youth and children in particular, through media campaigns, building mosques, opening Quran preservation institutes and many activities under different names (charitable, cultural and religious societies, universities, institutes and private schools. Imam al-Khatib schools, youth activities, reviving Turkish events with the heavy raising of the Turkish flag and imitating the gray wolf badge, training courses, competitions …) and ideological lessons in the curricula.

Fires and logging in a forest near the village of “Baflon” – Sharra.

The Kurds in Afrin have always been known for their attachment to nature, the land, and the olive tree in particular. 

The Turkish occupation and the militias associated with it continue to intentionally inflict severe damage on them. 

Before the invasion, large agricultural and forestry areas were bulldozed, with a depth of / 200-500 / meters, along the borderline / 135 / km, and the construction of a wall Turkey’s military vehicles also uprooted thousands of olive trees in many locations, such as Jabal Bilal, Jerqa, Darwish village, Chia village – Rajo district, and in the villages of Hamam, Marwaniya Fawqani, Tahtani, Anqale, Ashkan Gharbi – Jenderes district, Qarmatlaq and Jagali – Shiye district / Sheikh Al-Hadid and between the villages of Kafr Janna and Matina – Sharran sub-district and in Mount Shirawa, with the intention of establishing military bases; The fires and illegal cutting – never seen before in the region – affected natural forest forests and others planted in “the mountains of Sarsin, Kumrashe, Hawar, Jurga, Bilal, Maidan Akbis Road, Maidana, Qasim, Sheikh, Qara Baba-Rajo, Ramadana, Wadi al-Jlhim, Tatara, Ruta, Hajj Hasan, the site of Qaziqli, Sheikh Muhammad, and Julaqa – Jendres, Maydanki, Dresowan, Kfar janna – Sharra, Mahmoudiya – Afrin, Iska and Jalameh – Sherawa … ”; On the other hand, hundreds of thousands of olive and fruit trees and perennial forest trees have been cut down by militias and recruiting agents for the purpose of logging and making charcoal. 

As the area of ​​degraded natural forest and planted forests in Afrin region reached more than / 15 / thousand hectares out of 32 thousand hectares. 

The Kurds used to care for and protect the forests and take them as resorts and places for rest and blessings sometimes, in addition to planting all kinds of fruit trees, but the militants and the recruits deliberately cut or burned many of them.

Kurdish women in Afrin lost their freedom, their social, economic, and cultural activities and their collection of education decreased, and were subjected to attempts to impose the veil and cases (bullying, harassment of all kinds, kidnapping, rape, premeditated murder, forced marriage or exploitation of minors). For decades Afrin people have become accustomed to mixed-sex schools at all levels, while the recruited recruits who have been resettled refuse to mix, as crowds of them took to the streets calling for the local authorities to separate the sexes, and this was done in most schools, starting from the fifth grade until the third secondary school.

From a social point of view, Afrin was an open and full of movement and activity in all areas of life, transcending tribal ties and liberating from largely outdated customs and traditions. 

Its people were interested in acquiring knowledge for its children and preserving a distinctive position for women, and they were devoted to agriculture, industry, commerce, money exchange and construction. 

Seminars, forums, festivals, and celebrating events and holidays; They were cooperating with the Autonomous Administration in providing security and stability, fighting chaos, and persevering in protecting public property and infrastructure, and maintaining safety, public order, the environment and cleanliness.

= Responsibility:

Turkey violated the United Nations Charter and the Hague Agreement of 1907 AD, and launched aggression on the lands of a neighboring state, thus, Turkey obtained its description as an occupying state of the Afrin region without acknowledging it, and it is the one that imposes effective military and administrative control over the region and exercises sovereign activities in it, and has not committed to the content of Security Council Resolution 2254 (2015) In terms of “taking appropriate steps to protect civilians, creating conditions conducive to the safe and voluntary return of refugees and internally displaced persons to their areas of origin and rehabilitating the affected areas, in accordance with international law”; In addition to its Syrian partners and collaborators, it is primarily responsible for the conditions prevailing in the region (serious violations of international humanitarian law, especially the four Geneva Conventions of 1949 and the two additional protocols), for general deterioration and loss of order and public safety, as well as violations and various crimes committed, especially the crime of demographic change ( Changing the characteristics of an ethnic group towards degradation, dismantling and waste, according to hostile policies, hidden plans and coercive methods, methods of intimidation and means of murder and abuse (which amount to ethnic cleansing) mentioned as a term in UN reports, and in United Nations Resolution No. (47/121) issued on 18 / 12/1992 regarding Bosnia and Herzegovina) regarding the Kurds – as a distinct ethnicity and the original inhabitants of the region.

= Conclusion:

Afrin region and its people have been subjected to the crime of demographic change, which is considered a crime against humanity,

it is passing through a dangerous historical stage that calls for investigation and accountability by the independent international investigation committee on Syria and the rest of the United Nations bodies and concerned international organizations, as well as urgent action by the international community, especially the international forces active in Syrian affairs, to pressure the Turkish government to put an end to violations and crimes, and to work to end The Turkish occupation, the presence of terrorist mercenary militias, and the return of the region to Syrian sovereignty and the management of its people.

04/28/2021 AD

Media Office – Afrin

The Kurdish Democratic Unity Party in Syria (Yekiti)

Pictures:

– Forced migration from Afrin towards the displacement areas north of Aleppo, March 2018.

– The displaced village of Jilbere – Jebel Liloun.

– A model settlement village project in a mountainous location near the village of “Hajj Hasna” – Jenderes, April 2021 AD.

– A model settlement village project at a site near the village of “Khalta” – Jebel Liloun, April 2021 AD.

– Afrin market, with shops reserved by armed militias, May 2018.

– The archaeological hill of Aendara before and after the bombing by the Turkish army, the first quarter of 2018.

– Archaeological Tel Dromeya – Maabatli, before and after digging and bulldozing.

– “President Erdogan’s Square” – Afrin, April 2018.

– The destroyed “Kawa the Mourning” statue in Afrin, March 18, 2018.

– The Turkish flag in a handbook for the Kurdish language is being taught in Afrin.

– The cemetery of “Martyr Sido, Kfar Safra” – Jendires, before and after the destruction.

– The Yazidi Sheikh Hamid shrine – near the village of Qastal Jundu, before and after the destruction.

– A personal identity card that the occupation authorities give.

– “Dar Al Khalil” mosque – “Burjekeh” village – Jenderes, March 2021 AD.

– Fires and logging in a forest near the village of “Baflon” – Sharra.

Translated by Europe’s Organization of Democratic Unity Kurdish Party in Syria (Yekîti)