The Democratic Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria (AANES) has called on the international community to pressure Turkey to end its occupation of Syria, facilitate the return of the local population to their homes, and preserve civil peace in the region.
Turkey’s military operations in Syria have resulted in more than a thousand violations since January 2020, including missile bombardments, drone attacks and the destruction of civilian infrastructure, AANES said in its statement on Thursday.
The administration accused Turkey of escalating violations and direct attacks on the autonomous northeast Syrian region over the past four years, resulting in catastrophic consequences for millions of Syrians, especially Kurds, as the attacks deprived more than four million of basic necessities such as water, electricity and job opportunities.
In the same period more than 180 have been killed under Turkish attacks, including civilians and leaders of the civil and military administration.
The statement acknowledged 13 years of international governmental and non-governmental organisations efforts to shed light on the humanitarian crisis and human rights violations in Syria. It underlined systematic human rights violations committed by regional parties occupying Syrian territory, which have been documented by neutral international organisations.
Turkey’s occupation of Syrian territory, particularly the border strip and areas such as Tal Abyad and Ras al-Ayn (Serê Kaniyê), has led to the establishment of armed groups and civil administrations that have perpetuated thousands of human rights violations and enforced disappearances of Syrian citizens, mainly Kurds. These violations include premeditated murder, theft, confiscation of property, kidnapping, torture, sexual assault and destruction of archaeological sites.
The government also accused Turkey of deliberately changing the demographics of Afrin (Efrîn) and Ras al-Ayn, destabilising the region and creating conditions for further invasions. It cited Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan’s public statement about targeting infrastructure in the regions of northern and eastern Syria as evidence of Turkey’s intentions.
The statement highlighted the recent Human Rights Watch (HRW) report, which corroborates the government’s claims, and called for action by the international community to pressure Turkey to end its occupation, stop violations, compensate those affected and prevent demographic changes in the region.
The administration called on governments and international organisations to form an international committee to investigate the situation in the occupied territories, particularly Afrin, Ras al-Ayn and Tal Abyad. The committee should assess the impact of Turkish attacks on infrastructure and civilian facilities and hold perpetrators accountable under international law.
