Lodging trees continues in Turkish-occupied Syria’s Afrin
AFRIN, Syria (North Press) – Turkish-backed Syrian opposition factions, also known as the Syrian National Army (SNA), lodged fruitful trees in the Sheikh al-Hadid district northwestern Afrin, north of Aleppo.
Local sources told North Press that militants of Sultan Suleiman Shah Division (Amshat) of the SNA cut down 50 olive trees from three fields north and northwestern the village of Mestkan affiliated with Sheikh al-Hadidi, which is the division’s stronghold.
Militants of the division also cut down three long-lived nut trees, and when residents of the village expressed anger and rejection, the militants expelled them by force, threatening them with killing.
The goal behind cutting the trees down is to store them in warehouses to get dry and then be sold next winter at high prices, according to the sources that highlighted residents’ fear of such practices to increase, ruining their source of living.
Unknown individuals stole on Monday evening a vineyard, belonging to a resident of the village of Zaare in the Bulbul district in the countryside of Afrin.
An exclusive source told North Press that the unknown individuals stole vine leaves that belong to Ibrahim Jamo, and they broke some grape vines in the village.
The source added that Jamo rented the vineyard from a resident of the village at about $800 to trade in vine leaves.
Zaare is run by the Turkish-backed Mu’tasim Division, according to the same source.
Afrin has been under the occupation of the Turkish forces and their affiliated Syrian opposition factions, also known as the Syrian National Army (SNA) since March 2018 following the so-called “Olive Branch” military operation to push away the Kurdish People’s Protection Units (YPG) under the pretext of protecting “Turkish national security.”
The operation caused the displacement of about 300,000 of the original inhabitants of the Kurds of Afrin who have been taking shelter in 42 villages and five camps in Aleppo northern countryside, locally known as Shahba region, since then.
After the occupation of Afrin, thousands of trees have been cut down by the SNA factions, according to press and human rights reports.