By Fayyad Muhammad
RAQQA, Syria (North press) – Ibrahim finds himself forced to stay in the camp of Tel al-Samen where he has been displaced for nearly four years. Despite difficult living conditions, he considers it better than returning home.
Ibrahim Ibrahim, an IDP in Tel al-Samen camp in northern Raqqa Governorate, northern Syria, prefers to stay in the camp rather than returning to his home in the town of Suluk, in the countryside of Tel Abyad, because the area is controlled by the Turkish-backed armed opposition factions, aka the Syrian National Army (SNA).
In October 2019, the Turkish forces and the SNA took over the cities of Tel Abyad and Sere Kaniye (Ras al-Ain) in an operation called ‘Peace Spring’, resulting in the displacement of almost 300,000 residents of the area.
Security chaos and fear
There are tens of thousands of cases like Ibrahim, who also were displaced from Tel Abyad. The majority of them reside in the Tel al-Samen camp, and some others have moved to live in Raqqa Governorate and its villages after storming their area by security chaos and violations against the population, as human rights reported.
The reports also stated that The Turkish operation had forced about 300,000 people to flee their homes, including the displacement of more than 175,000 civilians from the area extending between Sere Kaniye and Tel Abyad, where the Turkish President claimed to establish a safe zone.
The so-called “safe zone” that Turkey claimed to establish did not provide safety for Ibrahim and his people to return, knowing that they own homes and agricultural lands that could improve their living conditions.
Those poor IDPs find refuge in tents of the camp to continue their lives without security harassment by the SNA that control civilians without accountability.
Ibrahim and other IDPs are enduring difficult living and economic conditions, the spread of diseases, and harsh climatic conditions in summer and winter.
Tel al-Samen camp, located 35 kilometers north of the city of Raqqa is designated for IDPs from Tel Abyad and its countryside, whom were displaced due to Peace Spring Operation. The camp is inhabited by almost 6,621 IDPs among 1,261 families, the majority of whom are elderly, children, and women.
Sere Kaniye has been under the occupation of the Turkish forces and has been controlled by the SNA factions since 2019 following the so-called “Peace Spring” military operation that aimed to push away the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) under the pretext of protecting the Turkish national security.
Previously, Ibrahim was a landlord in his village, where he used to support his family. However, now the man is forced to work as a daily worker and makes about 500,000 SYP per month, which is not sufficient to secure the basic needs of his family.
IDPs in Tel Abyad suffer from harsh displacement conditions due to the scarcity of humanitarian aid.
“I have lost my land, and there is no hope for us to return except after Turkey leaves our area,” Ibrahim said on behalf of the majority of the IDPs from northern Raqqa.
Fears of extremists
Wafa al-Basha, an IDP in her forties, was displaced when the armed opposition factions, some of which belong to the Islamic State (ISIS), entered. Media reports have documented the presence of former ISIS militants among the factions present in Tel Abyad and its countryside. Previously, the US-led Global Coalition aircrafts have targeted ISIS leaders in areas-held by the SNA.
In October 2022, a drone belonging to the Global Coalition targeted an ISIS leader in the town of Hamam al-Turkman in the countryside of Tel Abyad with three missiles, killing him while he was riding a motorcycle near the town.
This forced al-Basha to leave Tel Abyad out of fear of extremists.
Before the Syrian war, about 150 Christian families used to live in Tel Abyad. The majority of them were displaced when the ISIS took control of the area, and they were displaced again when the SNA took control of the area.
Al-Basha said that what really forces her to stay in the camp is the difficult living conditions, but more importantly, “dignity is above everything.” She called on NGOs and human rights groups to lobby over Turkey to leave Tel Abyad so that she can return to her homeland.
Dignity is above everything
Another IDP in Tel al-Samen camp, Mustafa Hussein, said, “Our dignity is priceless.” For that reason, the man left his belongings and chose to live in the camp.
He said that he will not return as long as the SNA there, due to the human rights violations they commit in the area.
Mohammed Sheikh Ali, an administrator in the Tel al-Samen camp, said that the IDPs have suffered a shortage of humanitarian aid over the past years, and despite the efforts of the Autonomous Administration of North and Eastern Syria (AANES) to support them, it does not meet the needs of the IDPs.
He added that the education sector in the camp is neglected, as no organizations have entered to educate the children, furthermore, the scarcity of medicines and medical facilities.
He also pointed out that the camp is overcrowding with IDPs, especially amid continued Turkish attacks on northern Syria, particularly on the town of Ain Issa, north Raqqa.
areas of north and northeast Syria that is run by the AANES. The strikes took place following a statement by Turkey’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Hakan Fidan, in which he threatened to strike a broader range of targets in Syria and Iraq in retaliation for the Ankara attack.
On Oct. 1, two individuals carried out a bomb attack in front of the building of the Ministry of Interior in Turkey’s Ankara injuring two police officers.
On Oct. 4, Fidan claimed that the two attackers had been trained in Syria. “From now on, all infrastructure, large facilities and energy facilities belonging to (armed Kurdish groups) in Iraq and Syria are legitimate targets for our security forces,” he threatened.
The administrator called on the UN and NGOs to put efforts on returning the IDPs to their areas and expelling Turkey from the Syrian territories.