Turkish border guards kill two Syrian civilians

KOBANI, Syrian Kurdistan (Kurdistan24) – On the outskirts of a Kurdish-controlled town of Tal Abyad on Syria's border with Turkey, Turkish border guards shot a group of Syrian civilians who were trying to cross into Turkey illegally on Friday morning.

In a local Tal Abyad hospital, Doctor Mohammad Moslem told a Kurdistan24 reporter that two civilians lost their lives, and another one is seriously injured and remains in critical condition.

“The 22-year old Mustafa Mohamad and 45-year old Gola Mohamad Temo had already lost their lives before reaching the hospital while 35-year old Abdul Ghani Tamo had a serious abdominal injury,” Dr. Moslem said.

Dr. Moslem added that the victims were targeted by Turkish border guards while they were trying to cross the border illegally.

“The Turkish forces have orders by their authorities to shoot anyone crossing the border instead of detention, and we receive such cases every week,” he said.

Since the outbreak of the Syrian civil war in 2011, Turkey closed its border crossings with the northern Kurdish-controlled areas of Syria (Rojava). They also tightened the security on the border with Rojava, preventing people who are fleeing the war-torn country to cross into Turkey by arresting them.

In the last two years, the Turkey-Rojava border line witnessed several cases of civilian casualties by the Turkish border guards.

The cases increased after the Syrian Kurdish forces of People’s Protection Units (YPG), backed by Syrian rebel allies and the coalition airstrikes, seized Tal Abyad and the surrounding villages on June 16, 2015. 

To make matters worse, Turkey announced the end of the open-door policy and started requiring visas for the Syrian nationals a few months ago. This restriction led people to resort to smugglers or crossing the borders illegally during the night exposing themselves to risk.

Reporting by Hisham Arafat

Editing by Karzan Sulaivany