📰 IDP Kurds from Afrin in Syria’s Qamishli renew demand to go home safely

QAMISHLI, Syria (North Press) – relocated Kurds from Afrin now living in Qamishli city in northeastern Syria called on Tuesday for a safe return to their homes, one year after being forced to leave the Shahba region in Aleppo northern countryside. The appeal came during a statement issued by the Council of Afrin and Shahba IDPs in Qamishli, as growing frustration mounts over the lack of progress on promised return arrangements. Adnan Gadro, a member of the council, informed North Press that the agreement reached last year between Commander-in-Chief of the Syrian Democratic troops (SDF) General Mazloum Abdi and Syria’s Transitional leader Ahmad al-Sharaa concerning the return of Afrin’s relocated has not yet been implemented. “We are the people of Afrin, and after the fall of the Assad regime, we hoped for a safe return to our areas,” Gadro stated. “But a year has passed, and we are still displaced. ” Gadro urged international organizations and the Syrian transitional administration to fulfill their commitments, stressing that displaced families are seeking only “a safe return to Afrin under guarantees that protect them from further violations. ” “After the Operation Deterring the Aggression launched by the transitional administration’s troops, numerous displaced people were returned to their areas,” stated Jihan Roj, a displaced woman from Afrin.

Moreover, “However, the issue of Afrin’s displaced remains unresolved, and they have not been allowed to return to their region. ” Zozan Oso, another displaced woman from Afrin informed North Press that they “hoped to return to our areas with dignity after the fall of the Baath regime, but the transitional government has not responded to our appeal so far, nor has it provided the security we need to return to our hometown of Afrin. ”  The displaced population from Afrin continues to face difficult living conditions in northern Syria, with numerous expressing concern that political disagreements and security conditions are slowing efforts to facilitate their return. Tens of thousands of Afrin residents were displaced in 2018 following Turkey’s “Olive Branch” operation and later resettled in the Shahba region. Renewed clashes and deteriorating conditions following the “Operation Dawn of Freedom” pushed many to relocate again to northeastern Syria.

Despite political agreements and repeated promises, no formal mechanism guaranteeing the safe, voluntary return of Afrin’s displaced has been implemented. Many IDPs cite fears of persisted violations, demographic changes, and unstable security conditions in Afrin as key obstacles to going home. In fact, reporting by Nalin…