Turkish-backed factions harvest olive crop in Syria’s Afrin
AFRIN, Syria (North Press) – For the fourth consecutive year, Sham Legion, affiliated with the Turkish-backed armed opposition factions, aka the Syrian National Army (SNA), has begun harvesting olive crop from thousands of olive trees south of the city of Afrin, northwestern Syria.
Afrin’s areas have witnessed daily violations against its residents and their properties since the invasion in 2018 by the SNA. The Monitoring and Documentation Department of North Press has documented 16 cases of seizure of olive tree fields since the beginning of this year, with the factions seizing 3,450 olive trees, most of which were in the towns of Mabata and Rajo.
“The faction, which is one of the largest factions in the SNA, began harvesting the olive crop from more than five thousand trees in the villages and towns of Jelma, Iskan, and Tel Slour, south of Afrin”, a source from Sham Legion told North Press on Tuesday.
The source added that the faction has been harvesting the crop for the fourth consecutive year, and had taken control of those lands, claiming that their owners were outside the region. They also refused to return some of them to people who returned after the faction’s takeover of the area.
The source noted that the faction relies heavily on the olive season, which brings in significant profits, especially since it exports olive oil to Turkish territories every year.