Justice for Afrin: Syrias’s unseen crimes

In January 2018, the Turkish army and allied armed militias invaded the northern Syrian region of Afrin. Since then, the Kurdish population has been subjected to systematic atrocities, from displacement, sexual violence, torture and systematic looting to killings. Human rights organizations ECCHR and STJ have filed a complaint with the Federal Public Prosecutor’s Office calling for an investigation into the perpetrators.

More on the case: https://www.ecchr.eu/en/case/tatort-syrien-verbrechen-an-der-zivilbevoelkerung-in-afrin/

Produced by: Limo for Research, European Center for Constitutional and Human Rights and Syrians for Truth and Justice
In cooperation with Sebastian Cobler Stiftung and Rosa- Luxemburg-Stiftung
Voiceover: Huwa Okoyomoh (English), Inaam Wali (Arabic), Sylvana Seddig (German)
Motion design & Editing: Limo for Research
Sounddesign: Niklas Kammertöns
Voice Recordings: Sebastian Morawietz
Film and Photo Materials: Syrians for Truth and Justice, Thomas Schmidinger
Additional Pictures: Anadolu Images, voanews.com

In January 2018, the turkish army and their allied armed groups invaded the region of Afrin, Syria. What started then has been continuing until today. An attack on the local, mainly kurdish population, consisting of torture, killings and arbitrary arrests, expulsing them from their homes and thus depriving them of their livelihoods.

These acts, committed by islamist militia groups and the turkish army, constitute crimes under international law. Together with six survivors of these atrocities, the ECCHR, Syrians for Truth and Justice and their partners have filed a criminal complaint to the german federal prosecutor, demanding an investigation into the perpetrators and offering evidence for such investigations.

But to understand why this happened, let’s look back to Afrin before the invasion. In northwestern Syria, along the turkish border lies Afrin, a district renowned for a beautiful landscape and rich agriculture. An estimated 13 million olive trees covered the landscape. With over 360 kurdish villages,

Afrin stands as the most densely Kurdish-populated region in Syria. However, Arab communities Alevi, Yazidi, and Syriac Christian minorities have historical roots there, and the land was graced with numerous religious shrines and archeological sites that reflect this diverse local culture. At the heart of Afrin city stood the monumental statue

Of Kawa the Blacksmith, a symbol of Kurdish resistance. In 2011, a wave of uprisings against the Bashar al-Assad regime swept across Syria, met with the harsh and brutal response from the government. This marked the inception of a violent and catastrophic conflict in the country.

Kurdish armed forces, known as the PYD, established an autonomous administration across northern Syria, which expanded to include Afrin in 2014. For four years, Afrin avoided becoming a site of intense violence. It served as a relatively safe region for those seeking refuge from other parts

Of the country, where the agriculture-based economy continued and even grew. However, Turkey views the PYD as a terrorist organization and perceived the autonomous Kurdish corridor along its southern border as an existential threat, which the Turkish military moved to disrupt. Operation Olive Branch was launched in 2018 to seize control of Afrin.

The attack began with extensive and indiscriminate airstrikes, followed by a ground invasion. However, by the time the city was also taken on March 18, it had already been mostly evacuated. Cultural monuments, including Kawa the Blacksmith, were destroyed as turkish flags were raised over the landscape. The Kurdish-led administration was pushed out,

And armed groups allied with the Turkish military took control of Afrin. Since the invasion, a Turkish-backed administration has been established in Afrin. Armed groups, which continue to hold power with knowledge and support of Turkey, commit daily atrocities like obituary arrests of civilians, torture, sexual violence and killings.

At the same time, systematic looting and property theft continue to displace the original population and prevent their return. Armed groups quickly seized the abandoned properties, spraying their names on buildings to signal zones of control. Many of the olive trees have been stolen, cut and burned.

Celebrations of Newroz, the Kurdish new year, have been banned. School curriculums and street signs that were once in Kurdish have been changed to turkish and Arabic. The Kurdish population of Afrin, which was estimated to be above 90% before the invasion, has now drastically dwindled. These acts constitute war crimes and crimes against humanity.

Under the principle of universal jurisdiction, these can be investigated anywhere in the world. Yet the atrocities in Afrin that cause great suffering to the local population continue with impunity to this day. On behalf of the victims, the ECCHR, Syrians for Truth and Justice and their partners demand the German Federal Public prosecutor

To investigate these crimes and the persons known to be responsible for them.