The Syrian Observatory For Human Rights

Hours after a curfew was imposed, Afrin city witnesses the first violent clashes between the Turkish Forces and factions under their command against a group of “Olive Branch” Forces

Aleppo Province, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights: the Syrian Observatory monitored violent clashes taking place inside Afrin city in the northwestern sector of Aleppo countryside, and in the details monitored by the Syrian Observatory: the Turkish Forces and “Olive Branch” operation factions of al-Sham Corps, al-Hamzat Division, al-Sultan Murad, The 3rd Corps, and other groups, began with the first hours of the morning their attacks on groups of “Olive Branch” Operation believed to be of the Ahrar al-Sharqiyyah Gathering, charged with robbery and looting in the city, while the Turkish Forces and the factions closed the roads leading to Afrin city and surrounded several neighborhoods of the city, while the heaviest clashes are concentrated in the middle of Afrin city in al-Villat Street, following the state of alert and tensions in the city over the last night, while the SOHR received confirmed information about casualties in the ranks of both parties due to these clashes, and the Syrian Observatory published yesterday evening that the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights monitored a state of cautious calm and anticipation prevailing Afrin city, which is controlled by the Turkish forces and the factions operating within Operation “Olive Branch”, and in the details obtained by the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights; the Turkish forces ordered to impose a complete curfew over the citizens and military personnel of fighters and members of the factions operating in the city, and the Syrian Observatory monitored that the calm was accompanied by alertness inside the headquarters of the rebel and Islamic factions, along with news about a sweeping and searching campaign by the Turkish special task forces in Afrin city, where there is information about preparations for raiding headquarters of Shuhada’a Al-Sharqiyyah Gathering most of whose fighters are descended from Deir Ezzor province, which handed over its weapons days ago after its objection to the Turkish orders, according to what Abu Khawla -the faction’s commander- declared, amid communication interruption in the city.

The Syrian Observatory published on the 27th of October 2018, that it monitored that the leader of the faction Shuhada’a Al-Sharqiyyah Gathering operating in the north-eastern sector of Aleppo countryside, announced the dissolution of his faction which is composed more than 800 members, and intersected sources confirmed to the Syrian Observatory that in addition to the reasons that have been mentioned by the leader of the faction Shuhada’a Al-Sharqiyyah known as “Abu Al-Khawlah”, of thefts, abductions and killing operations that are attributed to the faction, the faction was subjected to harassments and other process of clamping down on it by the Turkish authorities and factions close to Turkey, also previous attempts was carried out against the faction to impose a siege on it as well as threatening it of detention, until the leader of the faction dissolved Shuhada’a Al-Sharqiyyah Gathering and handed over the vehicles and weapons to the military justice in Aleppo countryside, the faction’s leader also previously rejected to comply with Turkish orders not to fight against the regime forces and their allies in the north-eastern countryside of Aleppo, and Abu Al-Khawlah showed his objection which was represented by fighting that took place between his faction against the regime forces in Tadef area.

And the Syrian Observatory published on the 9th of November 2018, that the residents of Afrin area who remained in it, are still living a real tragedy in the wake of the ongoing violations against them, by the Turkish-backed factions of the Operation “Olive Branch”, or by armed gangs that devastated their livelihood, their property and their lives, in which the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights monitored a new violation against the residents of Afrin, and in the details obtained by the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights; unidentified gunmen stormed today morning, Friday the 9th of November 2018, the house of a Kurdish citizen in Burj Abdallu village on the countryside of Afrin area, they tied the man with his wife and stole a sum of money and jewelry from them, but the gunmen were not content with the theft, they killed the man’s mother who is an elderly woman, where the gunmen strangled her to death, the SOHR also monitored that a faction close to Turkey and operating in Afrin city, arrested an activist who has been displaced from the Eastern Ghouta, amid fears of handing over the activist who was on a photography tour in Afrin city, to the Turkish forces.