By Nalin Ali
QAMISHLI, Syria (North Press) – As Turkey’s attacks on northeastern Syria continue, residents of Qamishli live in constant fear, hoping that the Kurdish-Turkish peace initiative will bring an end to the violence, and that Turkey will no longer have grounds to justify its ongoing strikes.
Fear and anxiety continue to haunt Hafiza every time Turkey targets her city, Qamishli, in northeastern Syria. Like many residents, she hopes that the Kurdish-Turkish peace initiative will help curb Turkey’s cross-border attacks.
Despite the passage of over a decade and a half since the start of Syria’s crisis, Turkey’s military operations against its southern neighbor have never ceased—even after the fall of Bashar al-Assad’s regime late 2024.
Now, residents of Qamishli are calling for an end to Turkish attacks, particularly after Ankara’s long-standing justification of fighting the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) in Syria has been challenged. This follows an appeal by imprisoned Kurdish leader Abdullah Öcalan, urging his party to lay down arms, dissolve itself, and engage in a new peace process involving all parties in Turkey.
Impact of Turkish attacks
Hafiza Hussein, a resident of al-Antariya neighborhood in Qamishli, tells North Press, “Not a single day passes without a Turkish strike—it has become a routine part of our lives. Every time Turkey targets our areas, it instills fear and terror in our children.”
She adds, “We have elderly people and sick individuals among us. When the strikes happen, it becomes difficult for them to move or evacuate. They too suffer from these attacks.”
Hussein further notes that even children are not spared from Turkish bombardment. “They have come to understand that it is Turkey bombing them and targeting their city. They live in constant fear and panic due to the relentless strikes on our area.”
Aliya Qasim, another resident, emphasizes how Turkey’s attacks mainly target vital service institutions and infrastructure, saying, “They deprive us of the basic necessities of life.”
She questioned Turkey’s motives, “What does Turkey want from us? What interests does it have here to justify its destruction of our region?”
Turkey continues to justify its attacks by claiming to combat the PKK in Syria, but residents hope that these justifications will collapse with Öcalan’s peace initiative, which has received widespread regional and international support.
“Our Demand is Peace”
Hikmat Othman, another resident, says, “Our only demand is peace—to stop Turkey from targeting our areas and infrastructure so that we can live safely alongside all communities in the region.”
Similarly, Radwan al-Khalaf, from Kadour Bek neighborhood, echoed the demand for peace and called on the international community to intervene and pressure Turkey into halting its attacks on civilians and infrastructure.
Al-Khalaf tells North Press, “Turkey’s strikes on service institutions and infrastructure deprive people of basic necessities such as water, electricity, and fuel—this constitutes a war crime.”
He adds, “For two years, we have not had stable electricity because Turkey repeatedly targets power stations, putting them out of service. These attacks directly impact civilians and disrupt our daily lives.”
Turkey’s ongoing military actions in northeastern Syria have caused severe damage to both civilians and infrastructure. Over the past few years, dozens of Turkish airstrikes have targeted vital facilities, including oil fields, gas plants, and power stations.
Human Rights Watch has documented multiple Turkish violations in northern Syria. In an October 2023 report, the organization highlighted how Turkish drone strikes between October 5 and 10 damaged vital infrastructure, leading to water and electricity shortages for millions of people.
Since 2016, Turkey has carried out three large-scale military operations in Syria, establishing control over a wide border strip with the help of Turkish-backed armed factions, aka the Syrian National Army (SNA).