The Syrian Observatory For Human Rights

11 days of Operation “Peace Spring”: 120 civilian casualties, SDF withdraws from “Ras al-Ain” and the international coalition withdraws from 2 military bases. The death toll among the “SDF”, the regime, Turkish forces and factions loyal to it rises to 470

Syrian Observatory for Human Rights,

October 2019

The past few hours witnessed several developments in the city of Ras al-Ain, north of Syria, where the Syrian democratic forces declared its withdrawal from the city. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights learned that SDF had completely evacuated the city after a five-day siege.

Turkey’s operation displaces 300 thousand civilians, 120 civilian casualties in 11 days. Medical sources say civilian dead bodies are thrown in the streets of “Ras al-Ain”

Since the early hours of Wednesday morning, October 9, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights has monitored the displacement of civilians from different parts of the Euphrates region, fleeing the Turkish military operation in the area. According to the statistics of the “Observatory”, the number of displaced exceeded 300 thousand civilians displaced from their towns, cities and villages, where the movement of civilians continues from their areas in Tal Abyad, Ras Al-Ain, Darbasiyah, Ain Al Arab, Ain Issa and other areas east of the Euphrates at the border with Turkey. According to Syrian Observatory statistics Human rights, the number of displaced people exceeded 300 thousand civilians toward the depth of the region, amid the difficult humanitarian situation in the region due to the huge numbers of displaced persons, in addition to the lack of water in al-Hassakah, and the outage of power stations due to shelling and clashes. According to sources of the SOHR, several cities, towns and villages are completely depopulated.

Over the course of 10 days of the Turkish military operation known as the ”Peace Spring,” 120 civilians fall victim to the indiscriminate shelling and battles waged by Turkey on northern Syria. According to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, the number of civilians killed since the beginning of the Turkish military operation has risen to 120, including 33 as a result of Turkish airstrikes targeting the city of Ras al-Ain, its surroundings and its eastern countryside, and the village of Rihaniya in al-Malikiyah countryside, including a citizen and two local press crew. Among the civilian casualties, 28 by bombing and targeting on the city of Ras al-Ain, where the bodies were buried earlier because of the siege on the city, and 27 including a child, a party official and two citizens were shot and executed by pro-Turkish factions on the highway south of the city of Tal Abyad and areas north of Ein Issa and the town of Sluk. In addition, 7 civilians including two employees of the self-administration were killed in the ground shelling on the outskirts of Tel Abyad, and 6 including a child, a woman and two elderly men due to rocket fire at Al-Bashiriya, Qadur bey and Al-Zaytouniya neighborhoods. Also, 5 civilians including a child were killed in shelling on the perimeter and countryside of Ras al-Ain area in Hasakah countryside, 4 by Turkish air strikes on Al-Bajiya village in Tal Abyad area, 3 by sniper in Tal Abyad, and a girl in shelling targeting Al-Qahtaniya countryside. Also, A man was shot by a Turkish sniper in al-Qamishli city, a man was shot by Turkish missiles on the outskirts of Qasr Deeb village in al-Malikiyah countryside, in addition to 2 civilians killed in the bombing of pro-Turkish factions at al-Farat village north of Manbij city, and a female child was killed by rocket shelling by the Turkish forces on a village in Ain Issa.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights learned that the medical convoy that entered this morning to Ras al-Ain (Sri Kanye) to evacuate more wounded and to transport the bodies of people who died earlier in the military operations in the besieged city has completed its work and left the city towards “Tal Tamr”. The medical convoy includes about 40 cars, while the sources of the SOHR pointed out that 28 civilians lost their lives during the past five days inside the city of Ras al-Ain (Sri Kaneh) as a result of shelling and targeting, as some of the bodies are in the hospital and some were lying on the streets after being targeted by snipers as they left their homes to buy their daily necessities. No one has been able to reach the bodies yet, while the medical teams have not been able to reach other bodies in houses or help the wounded as a result of the siege. “The city of Ras al-Ain is experiencing a disastrous humanitarian situation, as clashes continue in the city through attacks by pro-Turkish factions on SDF positions accompanied by renewed shelling despite the US-Turkish agreement. Also, two members of the medical teams were killed by Turkish shelling, in addition to the absence of some members of the medical team,” sources told the SOHR.

Turkish-backed factions continue their violations and breach the “ceasefire”. The death toll rises among both sides

Over the course of 11 days, the Syrian Observatory monitored the progress of the Turkish forces and their affiliated factions with intensive air and ground cover in a total area of ​​2,419 km 2, which is equivalent to one quarter of the area of ​​Lebanon, namely: Tal Abyad city, villages of Selouk, Mazra’at Al-Hammadi, Abu Qabr, Mazra’at al-Massihi, Hamida, Al-Mahdah, Dadat, Al-Yabsah, Al-Mushrifah, Tel-Fender, Bir-Asheq, Al-Tuwaraziyah, Zakah, Huwairan, Al-Wasta, Al-Ghajer, Shokan, Al-Khaldia, Al-Arida, Nabhan, Um Al-Garn, Ghazil, Al-Hawi, Tabbin, Al-Suwayn, Jamous Filo, Al-Zaidi, Al-Droubiyah, Ain Al-Arous, Tel Antar, Al-Badi, Jassem Al-Ali in Tal Abyad. Turkey also now controls Mabrouka town, and the villages of Kantari, Wadha, Twigel, Alouk, Keshtu, Aksas, Tal Khanzeer, Al Azizia, Baloja, Abu Al-Saoun, Hweish Al-Nasser, Al-Naim, Sahaleya, Libya, Tal Al-Banat, Kajo, Al-Mada’in and Nahih in Ras Al-Ain.

As a result of the continuous battels, the death toll among the Syria Democratic Forces, military councils and internal security forces since the start of the Turkish military operation on Wednesday afternoon have risen to 259. The SOHR also documented the death of 5 members of the regime forces as a result of a missile targeting by the Turkish-backed factions. Meanwhile, the number of deaths among Syrian factions loyal to Ankara and the pro-Turkey cells killed in the attacks and clashes with the SDF during the same period reached 196, including 21 of the cells loyal to Ankara killed in clashes with the SDF, in addition to 10 Turkish soldiers were killed during the battels, amid information about more dead Turks on the Turkish-Syrian border, and the number of those killed is likely to rise due to the high number of wounded, some of them in serious cases.

The SOHR also learned that members of the Syrian Democratic Forces began to withdraw from Ras al-Ain, in conjunction with the exit of the medical convoy that entered to evacuate the wounded and to transfer the dead bodies from the city. According to reliable sources, the Turkish-backed factions are still continuing to rampage within the areas they controlled in Tal Abyad at the border strip in the northern Raqqa countryside, where groups of factions have stolen homes and ransacked their contents after the displacement of its people as a result of the “Peace Spring”, in addition to burning homes and the theft of livestock, which brings back to memory the practices of the factions during the control of Afrin, the rampaging of the property of the people and the ongoing violations to date. In turn, the SOHR continues to monitor the violations of the factions, where reliable sources confirmed that Turkish-backed factions abducted an elderly citizen, her husband and a child in the village of “Gaida” in Tal Abyad, and the kidnappers demanded a ransom of 10 million Syrian pounds in order to set them free. It is noteworthy to mention that 5 members of the elderly family were killed in the area before by the same factions. Also, sources told the SOHR that members of the “Hamza Division” loyal to Turkey, kidnapped a young man named Mohammed Aboud in “Tal Half”, after he refused to hand over his motorcycle and mobile phone to the checkpoint elements, and is currently being held in a house Adjacent to the “Hassan Gas Station”, where this house is the headquarters the “Hamza Devision”. “There is another violation of the Hamza Devision in Ras al-Ain, where members of the pro-Turkish faction stole a car owned by Hamad al-Khalaf, in addition to stealing more than one mobile phone. al-Khalaf is a civilian who has no political or military activity. He is also an Arab, not a Kurd. They also set fire on his house,” the sources said.

The Syrian Observatory monitored the withdrawal of the International Coalition forces from “Sarin” airport, which is a military base for the coalition, located in the countryside of Ain al-Arab (Kobani), where the retired convoy took the Qamishli road, amid overflights of coalition helicopters over the area, while US forces destroyed “al-Qulayb” military base, which included a runway for military transport aircraft and helicopters in the area of Tal Baidar in Hasaka countryside, after it withdrew from it towards the Iraqi border.

 

info graphic: 11 days of Turkey’s operation “peace spring” in NE Syria (High resolution)