Turkey intensifies deadly drone strikes in Kurdish regions

 

 

The Turkish state continues its drone attacks, causing death and injury and making the environment uninhabitable for civilians. ANHA reported that in villages on the front lines in Manbij, normal life has come to a standstill for residents. In recent days, statements have been published confirming Turkish drone attacks and casualties in north-eastern Syria and in Sinjar.

 

3 YPJ fighters killed by the Turkish state

According to the Manbij Military Council, a Turkish drone struck a moving car on the road to the village of Hetabat in southern Manbij on 16 September. The attack resulted in the death of three fighters from the Women’s Protection Units (YPJ). 

 

In a post on the ‘X’ platform, Luxembourg’s Foreign Minister Jan Asselborn expressed his deep regret at the death of the YPJ fighters. The post, shared via the Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs profile, said: “FM Asselborn deeply regrets the killing in a targeted drone strike of 3 members of the Women’s Defense Units (YPJ) in Manbij, Syria last Friday. The Minister met with one of the victims, Servîn Serdar, in 2016 to express support in the common battle against the Islamic State.”

 

Civilians trying to help the injured were attacked

According to the ANHA news agency, the Turkish state also bombed a vehicle near the village of Hatimiye on the Qamislo-Amude road. The Press Communication Center of the Internal Security Forces of North and East Syria said in its statement regarding the Turkish state’s drone attack that the armed unmanned aerial vehicle targeted civilians who were trying to rescue the wounded. They reported that 2 members of the internal security forces were killed and 8 others wounded. 

 

The statement said that “the Turkish state continues to carry out relentless attacks on the regions,” adding, “This afternoon, a vehicle of our troops between Qamişlo and Amûdê was hit by an armed unmanned aerial vehicle. As a result of the attack, 2 of our comrades became martyrs”.

 

Genocide survivors also face drone attacks

Another recent Turkish drone attack took place on 17 September in the Yazidi town of Sinjar. According to RojNews, the attack targeted a car in which three fighters from the Sinjar Resistance Units (YBS) were killed. YBS released a statement on the attack: “The invading Turkish state attacked a car of our armed forces today at 1.50 pm local time. The brutal attack claimed the lives of three of our comrades. The aim of the attacks by the invading Turkish state is to disturb the security and peace in Shengal and to prevent the return of the displaced people.”

 

In late May, Said Ashor was killed in a Turkish drone strike on a housing complex in Xanesor. The Yazidi man, who had lost numerous family members in the ISIS attack in Sinjar, had been working since 2016 for the British NGO Mines Advisory Group (MAG), which works internationally in mine clearance in crisis and conflict zones. The Turkish state, on the other hand, claimed that Ashor was a “terrorist”.

 

Turkish air force conducts systematic drone attacks

In an assessment of the crimes and violations committed by the Turkish army and its mercenaries against the regions of northeastern Syria during the month of July, the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) reported on 10 August that the Turkish occupation army continues to violate the airspace of northeastern Syria, using warplanes and UAVs to target both civilian and military sites, including vehicles on public roads. The SDF said: ‘These attacks have caused loss of life among our fighters and civilians. The number of violations by warplanes alone has reached 58, while drones have attacked areas 10 times, including 7 attacks by the Turkish occupation army and 3 by its mercenaries. Worryingly, the use of suicide drones has been reported in these attacks.”

 

The Turkish air force systematically carries out drone attacks that repeatedly cause death and injury. It flies unhindered in the airspace over Syria controlled by the US and Russia. Turkish drone strikes have targeted representatives of the Autonomous Administration of Northern and Eastern Syria (AANES), members of the fighting forces and civilians, and have so far claimed dozens of lives. At the end of August, a Turkish drone also hit a vehicle belonging to the women’s channel Jin TV near Amude. 

 

Students unable to study

The new academic year began in northern and eastern Syria on 10 September, but thousands of students were unable to attend school due to Turkish attacks. Some 800.000 students started classes. However, thousands of students were unable to attend classes due to the damage and destruction caused by the ongoing attacks of the Turkish state and its mercenaries in the region.

 

The villages of Til Temir, Zirgan, Ain Isa, Manbij, Shehba canton and the villages of Shera and Sherawa in the province of Afrin canton are being bombed daily by the Turkish army and its mercenaries. According to the Til Temir and Zirgan Education Committee, 31.502 students were deprived of education as a result of the attacks. In addition, mercenary groups have turned dozens of schools in the occupied villages into military bases. Despite this, the Autonomous Administration is looking for alternatives to enable the students to continue their education.