ALEPPO, Syria (North Press) – 35-years-old Muhammad Harsoni, a resident of al-Khalidiyah neighborhood in the city of Aleppo, fears a repetition of events he had lived during the years of the Syrian war.
His fears came after Turkish threats to launch a military operation on the town of Tel Rifaat in the northern countryside of Aleppo.
The battlefield that Turkey threatens to enter is only 25km away from the city of Aleppo, which raises fears of a new displacement among residents of the city and its countryside.
On May 23, Erdogan announced taking steps to complete the so-called remained portions of the “safe zone” plan along Turkey’s southern border saying, “We will soon take new steps regarding the incomplete portions of the project we started on the 30 km deep safe zone we established along our southern border.”
The Turkish “safe zone” is an area of 30-35 km (19-22 miles) deep into Syrian territory that Turkey started establishing in 2019 to house Syrian refugees in an area along its border with Syria, as well as to keep it free from the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), which it regards as terrorists.
On May 25, Turkey’s National Security Council said that Turkey’s “existing and future military operations along its southern borders were necessary for the country’s security.” In the meeting, Erdogan delivered a speech to the MPs of his ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) and said, “Turkish military would continue to rid its neighbor of terrorists” refers to the SDF.
On June 1, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan renewed his threats of launching a military operation on northern Syria, and specified his targets in the two Syrian cities of Manbij and Tel Rifaat, which include many Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs).
Harsoni said that the Turkish threats make him recall the past events. He is afraid of re-experiencing what they had suffered before, like displacement and living under the sounds of bombing.
Harsoni recalled what he and his family suffered when the Free Syrian Army (FSA) entered Aleppo, saying, “My house was close to Bani Zaid neighborhood. During the battles between government forces and the FSA in Bani Zaid factories, we lived in terror and we could not sleep for hours.”
The man wonders about the international silence towards the Turkish threats, especially the human rights organizations which, in his point of view, “interact with humanity all over the world, but whenever it comes to Syrian people, they do not respond.”
This makes it worse
In light of these threats, Aleppo’s residents are still talking about the difficulties of displacement and adapting with new places they have suffered from.
In 2012, Turkish-backed armed opposition factions, also known as Syrian National Army (SNA), took control of the eastern neighborhoods of Aleppo, while the western neighborhoods remained under control of the government.
The city witnessed violent battles between the above mentioned parties, leading to a large wave of population displacement.
However, at the end of 2016, the government forces managed to retake all of Aleppo city.
According to press reports, the city of Aleppo was subjected to systematic destruction and theft of most of its factories and homes during the past ten years, which led to the city’s entirety being cut off from life and its basic components.
The city of Aleppo is the economic capital of Syria, and it is densely populated, located near the Turkish border in northern Syria, and its residents are famous of industry and trade.
In Salaheddine neighborhood, which was one of the first neighborhoods that the SNA entered in 2012, the 55-years-old Anas Kayal said that the military operation will make it worse, because the economic situation in Aleppo is deteriorating as a result of high prices and decline in purchasing power of the Syrian pound against the dollar.
The man expressed his anger at the terrorist armed opposition factions affiliated with Turkey, as “they betray their home and people by helping the Turkish butcher [Erdogan] in occupying and destroying their country and displacing the rest of the people of northern Syria.”
Kayal wonders furiously, “Have not those dolls that Erdogan stirs up satisfied after ten years of killing Syrians and devastating children’s lives?”
Kayal, who is now working in Jub al-Qubba market, still remembers when the SNA entered Salaheddine and displaced its residents, according to him.
He believes that the Turkish threats do not target one area, but Turkey seeks to occupy and destroy Syria.
Green light
Syrians, especially the residents of the areas threatened by an attack by Turkey, are anxiously waiting what will happen in the coming days, amid differing opinions about its seriousness.
Some people believe that these threats are no more than a media war and a negotiation card with the international community. On the other hand, the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) takes it seriously, considering any military operation is a continuation of the scheme to divide Syria and the Syrian north.
Rahaf Totonji, 40, a lawyer from al-Jamiliyeh neighborhood in Aleppo, says that she fears for her city and the repetition of what previously happened in Afrin.
“If Syria’s allies did not prevent Turkey from implementing its threats, they will destroy our hopes in restoring our occupied homes,” Totonji added.
The 40-year-old Raafat Barakat, a resident of al-Ashrafiyeh neighborhood of Aleppo, believes that Turkey is making these threats after winning a green light from its allies.
“Due to losing northern Aleppo, the city was experiencing a humanitarian, economic and social catastrophe. At that time, Afrin and its suburbs were a food source for the city of Aleppo and other cities,” he added.
On June 7, In a press briefing, the spokesman for the US Department of State, Ned Price, renewed his country’s concerns of a breach to the 2019 ceasefire agreement in northeast Syria, and said that any escalation by Turkey would affect the battle against the Islamic State Organization (ISIS).
He reiterated his country’s rejection of a Turkish military operation against northern Syria and noted that they made this clear to their Turkish partners.