HESNA MIHEMED

Shehba- After the Revolution in Rojava, the Democratic Autonomous Administration established Historical Site Management to carry out researches about the ancient and abandoned historical sites in Afrin. The church of the Elibiskê village is one of these historical sites. According to researches, the history of the church dates back to the Byzantine Empire. The church is located 10 km away from the town of Reco, 15 km away from the village of Elibiskê, and 35 km away from the city center of Afrin.

The church of the Elibiskê village

The Byzantine Empire is known as the Eastern Roman Empire or Byzantium. The Byzantine Empire was founded in 330 AD and defeated by the Ottoman Empire in 1453. The Byzantine Empire ruled in many parts of the world, including in Syria. The Byzantines built many historical structures across Syria. The church of the Elibiskê village is one of them.

The church was discovered as a result of research and excavations carried out in 2015 by the Historical Site Management in the Afrin region. The church is located in the mountain region, near the Turkish border. After the discovery, the Historical Site Management built walls around the church to protect it from thieves and destruction.

The church has many mosaics and many figures, animals, and plants were employed on the mosaics. According to the researches, the figures on the mosaics back to the Byzantine Empire period.

Stolen mosaics

When Turkey launched a military operation into the Afrin region, many historical objects were stolen and historical sites were plundered to destroy the historical memory of the region. According to local sources, many mosaics in the church were stolen on September 3, 2020, and then sold. The Historical Site Management cannot carry out researches in the church due to ongoing clashes in the region.

Esmehan Ehmed, the head of the Historical Site Management in NE Syria, spoke to NuJINHA about the historical places in the Elibiskê village. “People of the village of Elibiskê reported us when someone carried out excavation work in the historical site. We formed a team consisting of experts. The historical site is close to the Elibiskê village of Reco district and to the Turkish border. We discovered mosaics on the site and then a church. We built walls around the site to protect it.”

Historical sites must be protected

Esmehan Ehmed talked about the Turkish operation into Afrin and said, “After the Turkish military occupied Afrin, and they plundered the church in the village of Elibiskê. We have documents proving the plunder of the Turkish state and its armed groups. They stole and sold the mosaics of the church. We sent these documents to the international organizations but they remain silent against the attacks of the Turkish state on the historical sites.”