KRG should take a "clear" position on Afrin: PYD
n Wednesday, co-chair of the Democratic Union Party (PYD) Shahuz Hassan called on the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) to take a "clear" position on the Turkish army's military campaign in the northwestern Syrian enclave of Afrin.
ERBIL, Kurdistan Region (Kurdistan 24) – In a press conference held in Erbil on Wednesday, co-chair of the Democratic Union Party (PYD) Shahuz Hassan called on the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) to take a "clear" position on the Turkish army's military campaign in the northwestern Syrian enclave of Afrin.
"The people of the Kurdistan Region joined the people of Afrin in their plight, either through demonstrations or delegations that went to Afrin to show their support for the resistance," said the member of the leadership in Kurdish Syria (Rojava) and urged the Region's government to voice equal support.
Turkey launched its offensive against the People's Protection Units (YPG) on Jan. 20, claiming that Kurdish forces, which it argues are an offshoot of the banned Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), represent a “terrorist” threat to its southern borders.
A delegation from the Parliament of the Kurdistan Region visited Afrin in February to investigate the situation on the ground and to support the resistance shown by its residents in the face of the Turkish military operation.
According to human rights organizations, over 200 civilians have been killed as a result of the ongoing offensive, with scores more injured.
Hassan also charged that Turkey was seeking to bring about a demographic change in Afrin by evacuating its original Kurdish population and resettling families loyal to Erdogan, in their place. This is in line with claims of Turkish ethnic cleansing in Afrin made one day earlier by Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF).
Multiple sources on the ground in Afrin told Kurdistan 24 on Thursday that heavy Turkish shelling overnight had caused dozens of deaths, including children, and an unknown number of wounded.
The Turkish army announced on Monday that it had encircled the city. On Wednesday, the UN office for humanitarian affairs said that Afrin's water supply had been cut off for a week, following Turkish forces' capture of a major water dam in the region.
The conflict in the area has caused thousands of people to flee their homes within the Afrin region, towards Syrian government-controlled territory.