SNA faction cuts down 80 trees in Syria’s occupied Afrin
AFRIN, Syria (North Press) – Militants of the Turkish-backed armed opposition factions, aka the Syrian National Army (SNA) cut down on Wednesday over 80 old olive trees in lands and forests in the countryside of Afrin, northwestern Syria.
More than 10 SNA militants of the Sultan Murad Division, cut down over 60 olive trees from a land near the town of Sharran, as well as 20 trees from a small forest in the north, residents told North Press.
The town experiences daily logging by the militants of the same faction, who transport the trees to Afrin at night to sell in markets, according to sources.
The residents also added that the inhabitants of a settlement in northern Sharran continuously cut down trees.
After the occupation of Afrin in March 2018, thousands of trees have been cut down by SNA factions, according to media and human rights reports.
Since the beginning of 2023, the Monitoring and Documentation Department of North Press has recorded the logging of 10,059 trees, including 3,664 olive trees.
Local environmental activists accuse the SNA factions and Turkish forces of being involvement in “crimes against nature.”