New reports of civilian casualties and forced kidnapping arrive from Afrin, which has been under the occupation of Turkey and affiliated local mercenaries since 2018.
A mine explosion killed two children while leaving two children wounded in Afrin on Sunday.
The mine was planted by the occupying forces – mainly the Turkish armed forces and the local armed factions backed by Turkey – in the territory of a village named Mezin, located in the Shêrawa district of Afrin.
Two children, Azad Îbrahîm Hisên (12) and Dilyar Hemo Hisên (11), lost their lives in the mine explosion. Hisên Îbrahîm Hisên (10) and Nesrîn Mihemed Hisên (16) were seriously wounded.
Four residents of the village of Basûtê in the Şerewa district were reported kidnapped by the local jihadists, who call themselves the “Special Units” and are known to be operating as part of the Hamza Division.
The Hamza Division has been controlled and supported by Turkey and the Turkish-backed Syrian National Army.
The kidnapped villagers are Betal Fethî, Hisên Omer Elûş, Şêro Mihemed Xelîl, and Xelîl Mihemed Elî, and they were all taken to a prison in the village of Ebdelo, according to the Hawar News Agency.
Local sources said the jihadist groups backed by Turkey have initiated a new kidnapping campaign in Basûtê, beginning 8 April.
As a result of the Turkish armed forces Olive Branch military operation, the Syrian Democratic Forces withdrew from Afrin on 17 March 2018. Turkish armed forces and other military forces aligned to them, namely the Syrian National Army, captured Afrin the next day.
Significant human rights abuses by the Turkish armed forces and its backed militias were reported to have taken place during the capture of the city and there have been reports of many more human rights abuses in Afrin ever since.