Al-Hasakah | Supports of Autonomous Administration and of Kurdish National Council engage in hand-to-hand fighting

Al-Hasakah province: SOHR activists have reported that several demonstrations and sit-in protests staged, yesterday, by the supporters and members of the Kurdish National Council in several areas under the control of the Autonomous Administration in al-Hasakah province. The protests took place in al-Qamishli, al-Hasakah, Tel Tamr, al-Darbasiyyah, Amuda, al-Malikiyah (Dayrek), Rumaylan, al-Qahtaniyah and Ma’badah, as the demonstrators condemned the rising of fuel and bread prices and the arbitrary arrests by military formations.

 

According to SOHR sources, supports of the Kurdish National Council engaged in hand-to-hand fighting against other individuals supporting the Autonomous Administration during the sit-in protest in front of the UN headquarters in al-Qamishli city, before the Internal Security Forces interfered and broke up the infighting which left several people injured, including two members of the Kurdish National Council and three Autonomous Administration’s supporters.

 

Similar infighting occurred in Ma’badah, al-Qahtaniyah and al-Hasakah where members of “al-Shabiba al-Thawriyah” (the Revolutionary Youth) also engaged in hand-to-hand fighting against the supporters of the Kurdish National Council.

 

It is worth noting that the sit-in protest in al-Qamishli was organized for by the Kurdish National Council, Assyrian organization and the Syrian Communist Party which is affiliated to the regime-backed National Progressive Front.

 

It is worth noting that the residents in that region have reacted with these protests, as some blame the Autonomous Administration for creating this disorder and see that it had to revoke its decision of raising prices, while some others see these protests as “strife and treason”.

 

Yesterday, SOHR activists reported that dozens of Kurdish National Council’s supporters and members took part in a demonstration, protesting the increase of prices of bread and fuel. The protestors also denounced the arrests carried out by the military forces, raising placards with slogans written on them demanding to stop arbitrary arrests and revoke the increase of prices.

 

Asayish Forces had secured the demonstration and taken photos with the protestors, before calling for ending the sit-in.

 

It is worth noting that “al-Shabiba al-Thawriyah” had threatened to repress the demonstrators a few hours earlier without being able to act due to the heavy presence of Asayish Forces and emergency forces.

 

On September 19, SOHR activists reported that the Autonomous Administration in northern and eastern Syria has issued a decree raising the price of the pita-bread, that most of the population in the areas is depending on, due to the shortage of automated bakery bread.

 

The Autonomous Administration issued the decree on September 18, which set the price of one loaf of pita-bread that weighs 300 grams to 500 SYL.

 

The decree was met with broad popular discontent.

 

A civilian from al-Qamishly told SOHR activists, “given the ongoing miserable conditions in terms of deprivation, poverty and displacement due to some mismanagement and mistakes that can be avoided easily via some economic solutions, such decisions negatively impact the living conditions of population who have experienced difficult economic conditions,” adding that raising prices of oil or bread encourages citizens to seek immigration or displacement in search for better conditions.”