With Qatari funding, Erdogan continues his plan to change the demographic composition of Northern Syria

Cairo – Ismael Mohammed

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan did not wait long after winning the presidential elections on the 28th of May in order to reveal his intention to expedite the implementation of his plans which seek to change the demographic composition of the regions of Northern Syria. These plans are about to become reality at the expense of the Syrian refugees that he literally had sold out in cooperation with Qatar, which provides the funding for the implementation of these satanic plans.

The Qatar Fund for Development and the Turkish Presidency of Disaster and Emergency Management laid the foundation stone for a project to establish what they called an “integrated city in Northern Syria.” This in fact, happened in the presence of Khalifa bin Jassim al-Kuwari, Director General of the Fund, and Suleiman Soylu, the Turkish Minister of Interior, under the pretext that this city aims to provide a decent life for the Syrian refugees who will be returned from Turkey, while “Erdogan” revealed that the ultimate goal is to transfer one million Syrian refugees to those areas.

Ethnic cleansing and demographic change with a Turkish-Qatari partnership

In this context, Laila Musa, the representative of the Syrian Democratic Council in Cairo, told the “Target” Media Platform that Turkey has a project based on the entire Syrian North, according to the old Turkish literature, called the Wilayat of Aleppo, where Turkey benefited from the conditions, left by the Syrian crisis which further penetrated domestic circumstances and carried out occupation operations through understandings between it and some other countries.

Laila Musa, representative of the Syrian Democratic Council in Cairo

She further added that through the occupation of those regions or areas that are administered by the so-called “Salvation Government,” which is directly affiliated with Turkey, the Turkish State implements what is known as the Milli Pact as it links these areas in one way or another with other regions on the Turkish side. However, “Ankara” is not satisfied with this matter only but rather wants to perpetrate demographic changes and ethnic cleansing in those areas.

Musa also stated that the cleansing operations are not based on ethnicity only, but also cultural cleansing whereby all means of cleansing are practiced by Turkey in that region and the State of Qatar, which has contributed greatly with Turkey to the implementation of this project through the establishment of settlements. In fact, we have witnessed how a large number of settlements were created in the city of Afrin, and a few days ago there was the inauguration of a new settlement in the city of Jarabulus with the participation of the Turkish Minister of Interior, which is also funded by Qatar.

Targeting the Syrian identity

Moreover, Moussa believes, in the context of her statements to the “Target” Platform that Turkey is targeting the Syrian identity and Syrian sovereignty whereby all the efforts that Turkey is undergoing further seek to carve out lands from Syria, to link the Syrian region to the other side of Turkey and achieve the reshaping of the demographic composition in Northern Syria through the establishment of settlements and the settling of Syrian refugees who come from other regions to house them in those settlements. As a matter of fact, this is something that would create a Syrian-Syrian strife.

She pointed out that the city of Afrin was a model for that as Turkey displaced all the residents of Afrin and brought in refugees and displaced Syrians from Idlib, Ghouta and other Syrian regions and settled them in those areas, in addition to changing the names of places and education to Turkish and the usage of the Turkish currency. Furthermore, everything was done that could contribute to the alteration of the axis of the region’s history and identity as well as other aspects that pose a great danger to Syria.

A crime against humanity

The representative of the Autonomous Administration in Cairo confirmed that what Turkey is doing, namely building these settlements and changing the demographic composition, indeed constitutes a crime and a crime against humanity committed by the Turkish regime against the Syrian people, particularly since these crimes are committed during the invasion of those areas, which are still ongoing, including the fact that they are crimes that violate all charters and international laws and covenants.

Mrs. Leila Moussa further indicated that since the first day of the Turkish occupation, all the crimes committed by Turkey are highlighted, whether its support for terrorism or demographic change and ethnic cleansing operations, as documented reports are then prepared and submitted to all institutions and parties concerned with this matter. And she added, “But unfortunately, there are no serious moves with this track or regarding what we offer, and that is why Turkey is taking advantage of this circumstance and moving forward with its practices in Syria, and the result was announcing the construction of a new settlement in Jarabulus“.

At the end of her statements, Moussa touched on the position of the Damascus government on the Turkish crimes and said that in one way or another, the Damascus government bears part of the responsibility. For example, the situation in Afrin was based on a barter according to the outputs of Sochi and Astana, and Ghouta was replaced by Afrin, and regarding Turkey’s actions since March 2018, the Syrian government certainly bears part of this responsibility, as well as the countries participating in this barter.

Exploiting the Syrian refugee crisis

Immediately after winning the presidential elections, Erdogan announced the features of his plan during the upcoming period regarding Northern Syria, specifically by manipulating the refugee issue in order to implement his plans which seek to change the demographic composition in those areas, as he said that state institutions and civil organizations have built brick houses in Northern Syria. Additionally, the establishment of new housings to accommodate about one million Syrians with Qatari support is also underway.

Erdogan indicated that his interior minister, Suleiman Soylu, had gone to Northern Syria and supervised the laying of the foundation stone for the housing project, pointing out that this project comes within the framework of what he called the establishment of the infrastructure for the voluntary return of Syrian refugees to their country.

In turn, Mahmoud El-Shennawy, editor-in-chief of the Egyptian Middle East News Agency, said in statements to the “Target” Platform, that the project that was agreed upon between the Qatar Fund for Development and the Turkish Presidency of Emergency and Disaster Management, to lay the foundation stone for a city project in Northern Syria, comes as part of a “plan of Erdogan, which is not new to re-changing the demographic composition of those areas by exploiting the Syrian refugee crisis and trading it in operations of extortion and scoring political points, adding to his gains from what he did of building a buffer zone through a group of military operations in Northeastern Syria.

Mahmoud El-Shennawy, managing editor of the Egyptian Middle East News Agency

Al-Shennawi said that Erdogan’s efforts are focused on changing the demographics in the areas he occupies in Northern Syria and he took steps by supporting terrorist organizations under the pretext of securing the borders, whether these organizations are mercenaries or those who cover up with slogans of jihad and others, and this parallels the displacement of the indigenous population as well as the settlement of Turks, not just Syrians, in clear violation of Syria’s sovereignty.

The editor-in-chief of the Middle East News Agency confirmed that what the Turkish president is doing has caused the spread of terrorist organizations in those areas over the past years and that the issue of resettling the Syrian refugees who fled to Turkey during the years of the crisis is nothing but a reproduction of the refugee issue in another way through the establishment of a complete city and the exploitation of the vulnerability of the refugees for a long time.

Lastly, “Al-Shennawi” added that he wants to say that Syria is not qualified to receive its refugees who fled because of the destruction of the areas from which they were deported and this is in fact, is a right that is intended to be void, but Erdogan’s goal is known, and after winning the presidential elections, he will move forward with his plans that are not born of this moment.