The Syrian Observatory For Human Rights

Afrin’s battles rage and the Turkish forces fight desperately to take the control of two towns in the western section of the area with the help of intensive aerial and ground shelling

More than 820 citizens, fighters and members were killed during more than 6 weeks of clashes in Afrin area

 

The military operations and their accompanied shelling are still witnessing violent escalation, in Afrin area in the north western section of Aleppo province, where the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights monitored the continuation of violent clashes between the Turkish forces and the rebel and Islamic factions against the YPG and the Self-Defense Forces, in areas in the western and the north-eastern sections of Afrin countryside, where the SOHR monitored violent clashes between the both parties in Sharra Township in the north-east of Afrin, through which the Turkish forces managed to advance and take the control of two villages in the area, amid intensive aerial and artillery shelling witnessed in the area, where the SOHR learned that the bodies of the regime’s popular forces are still under the destruction caused by the Turkish bombardment yesterday, Saturday the 3rd of March 2018, which left 36 casualties at least of the regime’s popular forces which entered Afrin on the 20th of February 2018.

 

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights also monitored intensive and continuous bombardment by the Turkish warplanes, on Raju town in attempt by the Turkish forces to complete their control on it, after they failed yesterday to impose their full control over this strategic town, and the SOHR also monitored violent clashes taking place between the YPG and the Self-Defense Forces against the forces of the “Olive Branch” Operation, at the outskirts of Sheikh Hadid town in the western countryside of Afrin, amid intensive artillery and rocket shelling by the Turkish forces on the area, in conjunction with bombardment by Turkish warplanes on the town, where the Turkish forces tend to carry out advancement through which they are able to impose their control over the strategic towns in the northern and the western countryside of Afrin, thus, it has increased to 85 villages and only one town (Bulbula), with a percentage of about 24% of the total villages of Afrin, and the Turkish forces managed to reach the outskirts of the strategic towns of Jendires and Raju, and only few hundreds of meters remain for them to reach Jendires town after the forces of the “Olive Branch” Operation managed to achieve strategic advancement 6 days ago, and linked the controlled areas of the factions and the Turkish forces operating in the “Euphrates Shield” Operation in the northern and the north-eastern countryside of Aleppo, Idlib province and the western countryside of Aleppo, through a border line stretched from the north and west of Afrin, and reaches areas mentioned above.

 

And this fighting accompanied by intensive exchange of targeting and aerial and rocket shelling, raised the death toll in the ranks of the both conflicting parties, where it has increased to 320 including 59 soldiers of the Turkish forces, the number of the members and fighters of the Turkish forces and the factions who were killed in the clashes against the Kurdish Units in Afrin area, while it rose to 295, the number of fighters of the YPG and the Self-Defense forces who were killed in the shelling and clashes in Afrin countryside, also hundreds of citizens, fighters and soldiers were injured with different severity, some of them have permanent disabilities, while the SOHR documented the death of 58 members at least of the regime’s popular forces as a result of the Turkish aerial and artillery shelling, and the SOHR also documented the death of 149 citizens including 27 children and 20 women, who were killed in the Turkish aerial, rocket and artillery shelling, and executions carried out against citizens in Afrin area, since the 20th of January 2018, while hundreds others were injured with varying severity, some of them have permanent disabilities.