Category Archives: Turkey

Turkey army confirms start of new ‘Olive Branch’ operation inside Syria

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Turkish tanks are parked near the Syrian border at Hassa, in Hatay province, as part of operation “Olive Branch,” launched a few days ago. The operation aims to oust the People’s Protection Units (YPG) militia, which Turkey considers to be a terror group, from its enclave of Afrin. The Turkish army confirmed it had started a major new ground and air cross-border operation against the People’s Protection Units (YPG) militia in Syria, which Turkey deems to be a terror organization. Dubbing the new campaign operation “Olive Branch,” the Turkish army said it had begun at 1400 GMT and was aimed against the YPG and also Daesh extremists.
The army also said the operation would be carried out “with respect for Syria’s territorial integrity” and stemmed from Turkey’s rights under international law. “Our armed forces have started an air campaign in order to destroy elements” of the YPG, Prime Minister Binali Yildirim said in a televised speech. An AFP correspondent on the Turkish side of the border saw two warplanes launch air strikes inside Syrian territory. Meanwhile, units of pro-Ankara rebels known by Turkey as the Free Syrian Army (FSA) began moving into the Afrin area of Syria which is controlled by the YPG, the state-run Anadolu news agency said.

The Battle for Aleppo, Syria’s Stalingrad, Ends

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The Battle of Aleppo, which since 2012 has pitted the despotic government of President Bashar al-Assad against an array of disorganized opposition rebels, now appears to be over. A deal to allow the safe passage of the last opposition fighters, their families, and any civilians who want to leave—an end to the agony—was brokered Tuesday by Russia and Turkey. “All militants, together with members of their family and the injured, currently are going through agreed corridors in directions that they have chosen themselves voluntarily,” Russian Ambassador Vitaly Churkin told the U.N. Security Council.

Memories of Aleppo : Syrian refugees remember life

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A combination photo shows (Upper) people walking next to the art instalation “Monument” by Syrian artist Manaf Halbouni, made from three passenger busses in Dresden, Germany February 8, 2017, and (Lower) civilians walking near upright buses barricading a street, which serve as protection from snipers loyal to Syria’s President Bashar al-Assad, in Aleppo’s rebel-controlled Bustan al-Qasr neighborhood on March 21, 2015. 

Land mines : The silent killers in Syria war

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According to recent estimates, more than five million Syrians live in areas that are heavily contaminated by unexploded devices, including more than two million children who are at risk of falling prey to explosive remnants of war, such as landmines, cluster munitions and other devices. 
Among the victims is Jamila Muhammad, 65, who remained in Syria even after several of her children and grandchildren fled to Turkey. Almost a year ago, in May 2015, she was out herding the family’s small flock of sheep near al-Khalfatli, a small village near the Turkish border. “I bent down because I saw a pretty flower,” Muhammad told Al Jazeera. “But under it was a mine.”
Muhammad lost the lower part of her right leg in the explosion. She tried to get treatment in Syria, but eventually her son convinced her to go to Turkey to be fitted for a prosthetic limb. After several months of rehabilitation, she is still not used to her artificial leg, she said. Ateeq is one of the rare Syrian volunteers with professional experience in clearing explosive devices. After defecting from the army, he says he decided to use his expertise to protect civilians from the danger of unexploded devices. He founded the Syrian Centre for Awareness and Demining, where he trains small teams in mine clearance and risk education.