Amid the Turkish forces’ ignorance…a Turkish-backed faction carry out excavation for artifacts in Afrin city with the purpose of stealing and selling them
The pro-Turkey factions and those operating within the “Olive Branch”, are continuing their violations in Afrin through erasing the area’s history, through excavation for artifacts and stealing and selling them in Turkey where the perpetrators earn money through the proceeds from selling the antiquities and what they find of archeological pieces, where the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights monitored that armed members of the pro-Turkey faction “Sultan Murad”, are digging and drifting soil in Bulbul Township in Afrin countryside in the north-east of Aleppo, and in the details obtained by the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights; the members have been carrying out excavations since morning through digging and drifting the soil on the hill that is located between the villages of Bibaka – Qusha – Sharqa of Bulbul township in Afrin countryside, in search for artifacts using heavy vehicles, in addition to the uprooting of olive trees before the Turkish forces which are present in the area.
And the SOHR published on the 16th of March 2019, that demographic change, power, control of economic resources, displacement, unleashing the factions in looting, robbery, theft, arrests, kidnapping, assault, imposing royalties, and seizing property, all this has not satisfied Turkey’s insatiable or its hunger to expand its control under the pretext of “its national security”, which fully put the Syrian north in the west of Euphrates area under its control, after switching the factions’ loyalty to itself, and because that did not satisfy the Turkish insatiability, Turkey started a new type of violations within its controlled areas in Afrin, where reliable sources in the southwestern countryside of Afrin confirmed that Turkish vehicles, equipment, and devices were seen on the hill of Jandairis, where the Turkish teams on the hill dug in it and searched for buried stuff and antiques using the equipment they brought to the hill, along with teams specialized in the search for antiquities, and the reliable sources of the Syrian Observatory added that the roads near the hill that lead to it were completely closed by the Turkish Forces, and the Syrian Observatory monitored by photographs the machines they use in excavations in Jandairis Hill area, while the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights obtained information from other sources that excavations were taking place in Maabatli countryside in the western sector of Afrin countryside, where excavation operations and drilling took place in Tal Ali Aysheh and Tal Zarfakeh, in a manner similar to what is happening in Jandairis area of excavation and closing roads to the area.
Turkey has transformed during the last months and years to a market for selling gold and antiques; found by hundreds of drilling workshops within areas control of the rebel and Islamic factions and areas of control of Hayyaat Tahrir al-Sham, the Turkestani Islamic party, the “Islamic State” Organization, and “Jihadi” factions, where antiques and manuscripts were smuggled from the east of Damascus to the Syrian north then into the Turkish territory, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights obtained information from several reliable sources that the looting of antiquities in Afrin area located in the northwestern sector of Aleppo continues, and it continues to ignite the resentment of residents of Afrin area and its displaced people, where some of them said: “they came with allegations of liberating Afrin and protect it, but its protector became its thieves.” Credible sources told the Syrian Observatory that a leader in al-Shami Islamic Corps close to the Turkish authorities is conducting archaeological excavations in the areas of Midanki and al-Nabi Hori, where they loot antiquities they find, amid intended turn-a-blind-eye by Turkey in letting the factions change the history of the area, after transforming its present and future, and its hundreds of thousands residents have become displaced in camps north of Aleppo, while their houses are being looted, robbed, and seized by factions of “Olive Branch” Operation Forces, which took control of Afrin at the end of the second third of March 2018.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights published on the 3rd of October 2018 that from violation to violation, and from looting to another, where the looting is becoming more of an erasing for the history of people of the area than looting, through pre-determined looting operations, in which the instigators work to achieve the goals of the demographic change and erasing history, as has happened in various Syrian areas, while the executors earn money from selling these antiquities and the material they find, which decreases the amount of antiquities day after the other; after allowing it by the military party which controls of the area, and the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights monitoring by video the theft and looting carried out by a military faction operating in Afrin area , and in the details obtained by the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights: the 1st Corps of the National Army led by the Renegade Colonel defected of the regime forces Moataz Reslan, who working under the command of the Turkish authorities, where he deliberately stole antiquities from al-Nabi Hori Castle area, and the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights was able to monitor the excavation, robbery, and looting which took place in the area in the northern countryside of Afrin near the Syrian – Turkish border, and the reliable sources confirmed to the Syrian Observatory that commander of the Corps is the one overseeing the excavation and looting of antiquities, as part of a new episode in the looting series in the Syrian areas, where it is sold in the local and regional market and then transferred to other areas, as happened in Idlib Province and its surroundings during the past years by the factions controlling the area.
These thefts and looting of relics from al-Nabi Hori area in Afrin come after major violations in Afrin area against civilians, olive plantations, property of citizens, and infrastructure, where the Syrian Observatory monitored that the warplanes carried out several raids since Operation “Olive Branch” was launched on the 20th of January 2018, on 3 archeological sites, which are Deir Meshmesh area in the south-east of Afrin, Al-Nabi Hori area in the north-east of Afrin, and Ein Dara archeological area in the south of Afrin, and the strikes resulted in material damage in the areas of Deir Meshmesh and Al-Nabi Hori, and caused great destruction to Ein Dara area, and this intensive shelling on Afrin area which is semi-besieged, and the targeting of the archeological sites by the Turkish warplanes, caused rage among locals, who accused the Turkish forces of an attempt to eliminate the archeological sites that represent the civilizations in the area of Afrin.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights published on the 8th of March 2018 that the Syrian north is witnessing tension its roots began east of the capital Damascus, and moved to Syrian north, where the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights monitored a few days ago tension between the General Command of Rahman Corps and the leadership of Jobar neighborhood of Damascus in particular, in one hand, and between the Local Council of Jobar neighborhood on the other hand, after disagreements on ancient manuscripts and relics which were in the custody of leadership of Rahman Corps in Jobar neighborhood, and in the details which the Syrian Observatory was able to document: before the displacement process the Local Council of Jobar neighborhood trusted Rahman Corps on Jewish manuscripts and relics, used to be located in the synagogue within the Damascus neighbourhood of Jobar in the eastern section of the capital, and when the displacement was carried out in late March 2018 – beginning of April 2018; Rahman Corps transferred the relics and manuscripts it was trusted to keep to its destination north of Syria, but after reaching the Syrian north the Council asked the leadership of the Corps to return the things it was “trusted” to keep; the Corps denied having them, which created considerable tension between both parties.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights monitored both parties carrying out meetings in order to reach a solution for this matter, while Rahman Corps insisted on denying having the relics and manuscripts with it, which pushed the Council and some of the fighters from Jobar neighbourhood –who fight under the command of the Corps– to accuse Rahman Corps represented by its leader Abdunnasir Shamir of “stealing the manuscripts and relics that were present in the synagogue”, which escalated the tension between both parties even more, also reliable sources confirmed to the Syrian Observatory that the relics are very precious.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights carried out a series of tours over consecutive months, and has been able to gather important information with photographs and videos confirming these lootings, where Idlib province is considered one of the richest provinces in antiques dating back to successive civilizations lived in the area, some of which reach the 5th millennium BC, starting from the modern Stone Age “Neolithic”, through the kingdom of Ebla, the Hittites, Aramaic, Assyrian, Greek, Roman and Byzantine eras, reaching the Islamic Age at its various stages until the Ottoman era, where Idlib province has more than 400 antique sites including at least 200 of antique hills, where the antiques are spreading in Idlib province and its surroundings, within the areas of Babsqa, Bab al-Hawa, Jisr al-Shughur, Maarrat al-Nu’man and its countryside, Bab al-Neirab, Qminas, and Sahl al-Ghab, as well as other areas scattered within the province, and these sites ranged from fully preserved to villages where only ruins remained, in addition to castles and what is left of posts, and with the beginning of the dispersion of social security and after shifting the blame between two parties, the opposition and the regime, and the absence of the responsibility of the former party, the regime forces, these sites began to be robbed and looted without control or authority of anyone. The beginning took place with primitive methods of drilling and excavation, where antiques were looted and transported to Turkey, and sold to traders specializing in such profitable operations, and over the days, and as the number of diggers and searcher for these antiques increased, the methods of digging and searching for these antiques evolved, where they have been evolved from copper rods and reading markings on rocks near the antique sites to modern drilling equipment, and metal detection systems, and as the security chaos and inability to control the excavation of antiquities spread, this kind of work spread as well among people of Idlib province, where the unemployed people have become busy searching for the antiques, treasures, or important stuff, in the absence of accountability, no one of the diggers has been afraid to look for them.