Ongoing violations | Turkish-backed factions continue cutting olive trees in Afrin countryside

Turkish-backed factions continue to log trees in Afrin in the Northern countryside of Aleppo, with a view to selling them as firewood for heating and money.

In this context, nearly 150 olive trees in Shirawa and Sharan districts of Afrin countryside, north-west of Aleppo, were cut down by members of Malakshah and Al-Sham corps factions and transported to Afrin city markets for sale as fire logs for heating. These trees are owned by three residents of Basufan and Sinka villages.

In November 2022, SOHR documented 17 incidents of felling fruit-bearing trees by factions of the Turkish-backed “National Army,” where over 2,224 olive trees were cut down in several areas in villages and districts of Afrin.