Barzani Charity Foundation: It is our duty to help displaced civilians from Afrin

ERBIL, Kurdistan Region (Kurdistan 24) – What has happened to the people of Afrin in Syrian Kurdistan is a tragedy, and we must help provide aid and assistance, the president of the Barzani Charity Foundation said on Tuesday.

As the Turkish military offensive in Afrin reached its climax, a wave of people from the Kurdish-held enclave have been displaced and are in need of urgent humanitarian assistance.

Musa Ahmad, the president of the Barzani Charity Foundation, said his organization is doing all it can to help the civilians of Afrin affected by the war.

“We have documented the number of displaced people from Afrin, and it is our duty to offer them all the assistance that we can,” he told Kurdistan 24.

“There are daily waves of displacement from Afrin toward the Kurdistan Region, and the numbers are increasing,” Ahmad noted, adding his organization is seeking to “be a bridge between the displaced and international organizations” which can provide more aid.

According to the charity organization’s president, the security situation in Afrin has made it difficult to deliver aid to those in need. “We tried very hard to deliver aid to Afrin, but it has been challenging,” he said.

Turkish and Syrian rebel forces overtook the Kurdish-held enclave on March 18 where they declared full control following a nearly two-month long offensive against the People’s Protection Units (YPG).

Ankara, who launched its military incursion into Afrin in January, claimed the operation was meant to secure its borders of YPG forces which it argues are an offshoot of the banned Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), thus “terrorists.”

The offensive killed over 250 civilians, mostly women, and children, and displaced tens of thousands.