Call from displaced women of Afrin to international community: End the silence
Women, who had to leave Afrin and live in Shahba, state that people, particularly women, have faced inhumane practices in Afrin. They call on the international community to raise their voices.
ŞÊRÎN ELÎ
Shahba- Turkey and Turkish-backed factions took Afrin under their control on March 18, 2018. Since then, thousands of the people have been forcibly displaced from Afrin and they have settled in safer areas in NE Syria. Shahba is one of the safe areas for them. The people of Afrin, who settled in Shahba live under difficult conditions. Women, children, and old people are most affected by these difficult conditions.
“Women have faced inhumane practices in Afrin”
49-year-old Zeyneb Oba is from the Gemrûk village of Afrin’s Mabeta town. She told us they have lived in nylon tents in summer and winter and faced many difficulties, “We have resisted in Shahba for four years. The international community still remains silent against what we have been going through. The Turkish state says “Afrin is a safe place” but it lies. People returning to Afrin face many inhumane practices there. There are many displaced people in Shahba now. The Turkish state has been carrying out inhuman practices against the nature and women of Afrin since it occupied Afrin. In addition to the difficulties, we also suffer from the embargo imposed by the Ba'ath regime on the region,” Zeyneb Oba told NuJINHA.
Underlining that an honorable death is better than a dishonorable life, Zeyneb Oba said, “Everything is very expensive and we cannot buy anything due to high prices. I call on the international community and human rights organizations to end their silence.”
She still has hope of returning to Afrin
50-year-old Feyrûz Sabrî is from the Heyat village of Afrin’s Rajo town and she has lived in a camp located in Shahba with her family for four years. “We live in the hope that one day we will return to Afrin. We want to return to Afrin and have a peaceful life like before. Autonomous Administration helps us a lot. However, we are subject to the pressures of the regime. We demand the international community to protect the displaced people.”
They keep struggling
35-year-old Rabîa Mihemed is from the Çeqelo village of Afrin’s Şiyê town. Stating that women, children, and old people are the most affected by difficult conditions, she said that they will keep struggling to return to their homeland.