{"id":2153,"date":"2022-08-07T03:37:54","date_gmt":"2022-08-07T01:37:54","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/hevdesti.org\/?p=2153"},"modified":"2022-08-07T03:55:53","modified_gmt":"2022-08-07T01:55:53","slug":"insecurity-in-peace-spring","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/hevdesti.org\/en\/insecurity-in-peace-spring\/","title":{"rendered":"Armed Chaos and Insecurity in the \u201cPeace Spring\u201d Strip"},"content":{"rendered":"
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  1. \n

    Executive Summary<\/strong><\/h4>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    Over the first half of 2022, the Hevdesti-Synergy Association for the Victims in Northeast Syria documented 23 intra-factional clashes between factions of the opposition SNA in the regions of Ras al-Ayn\/Ser\u00ea Kaniy\u00ea and Tall Abyad that caused the death of one civilian and injured eight others, including a woman and a child. The internal fighting also killed 19 fighters of the Turkish-backed groups and injured at least 75.<\/p>\n

    During the same period, Hevdesti-Synergy Association documented four cases of murder carried out by anonymous gunmen in which two fighters of the opposition SNA as well as two civilians were killed. One of the civilians was a jeweler who was shot during a robbery. Moreover, Hevdesti-Synergy Association documented two failed assassination attempts in which three SNA fighters were injured. One single case of direct fire was documented when an armed group operating under the al-Hamza\/al-Hamzat Division fired bullets on a gathering of civilians, injuring one boy.<\/p>\n

    The information collected by Hevdesti-Synergy Association showed that there are several reasons behind the internal clashing between the SNA-affiliated factions. The majority of clashes are on disputes over power, drug dealing, and human trafficking between Syria and Turkey. Other clashes take place at first between individuals and, in some cases, evolve to become a wider military confrontation.\u00a0 Tribal fanaticism (Asabiyya) contributes to developing some of the disputes between fighters of the SNA-affiliated into wider confrontations.<\/p>\n

    The biggest toll felt by intra-factional clashes between armed groups affiliated with the SNA over the first half of 2022 was in April, which coincided with the holy month of Ramadan, when eight internal clashes broke out. Seven broke out in March and four in May, one of which was the most violent internal clashes in Turkish-held areas in northern Syria.<\/p>\n

    The group that was part of the most intra-factional clashes in Ras al-Ayn\/Ser\u00ea Kaniy\u00ea and Tall Abyad regions during the period the report is covering is al-Hamzat Division, as it was involved in 16 cases of internal infighting. Tajammu Ahrar al-Sharqiya\/Gathering of Free Men of the East took part in seven cases of internal infighting, the 20th<\/sup> Division took part in six, and the Military Police took part in five. The internal fighting did not break out, as expected, between two different armed factions only, rather eight internal clashes at least erupted between armed groups of the same faction.<\/p>\n

    All the intra-factional fighting between factions of the SNA in Ras al-Ayn\/Ser\u00ea Kaniy\u00ea and Tall Abyad regions broke out in populated areas such as markets, residential neighborhoods, and villages. In some cases, internal fighting broke out on checkpoints used by civilians. In addition, cases of killings, assassinations, and shootings were documented in the towns and villages.<\/p>\n

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    Based on the above, and contrary to Turkey\u2019s propaganda that its military operation \u201cPeace Spring\u201d created a \u201csafe zone\u201d, armed chaos, and insecurity, and instability have continued to characterize the situation in the two regions of Ras al-Ayn\/Ser\u00ea Kaniy\u00ea and Tall Abyad, though two years and a half have passed since Turkey\u2019s occupation of the two regions.<\/p>\n

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    The victims believe that impacts of internal fighting and armed chaos are not only limited to civilian casualties and civilian property damages, rather they push the population to consider leaving the whole region. The deteriorating security situation increases the instability and clearly affects the economic development process, exacerbating the bad economic conditions and extreme poverty the majority of Syrians are already suffering from across the country.<\/p>\n

    Since October 2019, Turkey has occupied the areas lying between Ras al-Ayn\/Ser\u00ea Kaniy\u00ea and Tall Abyad and invaded them under the so-called \u201cOperation Peace Spring\u201d. Therefore, Turkey is under the obligation to ensure its respect to the duties of an occupying power, as spelled out primarily in Articles 42-56 of the 1907 Hague Regulations<\/a>[1]<\/sup><\/a> and Articles 27-34 and 47-78 of the Fourth Geneva Convention<\/a>, in addition to Common Article 2 to the Geneva Conventions regardless of the period of occupation and incremental obligations that take effect over time[2]<\/sup><\/a>.<\/p>\n

    Beside not recognizing the occupation of parts of northeast Syria and not assuming its duties as an \u201coccupying power\u201d in the areas between Ras al-Ayn\/Ser\u00ea Kaniy\u00ea and Tall Abyad, widespread armed chaos and insecurity indicate that Turkey is violating items of the US-Turkish ceasefire agreement<\/a> in northeast Syria, announced on 17 October 2019.<\/p>\n

    All of the above, the daily violations committed by armed groups of the Turkish-backed SNA, and lack of accountability and persistence of impunity, make the Turkish-held territories unsafe and not in meeting with the criteria<\/a> of voluntary return and return set by the United Nations.<\/p>\n

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    \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 2. Recommendations <\/strong><\/h4>\n

    Turkey has failed to assume its responsibilities vis-\u00e0-vis the territories it occupies in Syria and has not taken any serious measures to ensure the protection of civilians. Instead, it has turned a blind eye to the intra-factional fights between the armed factions which were authorized to run the region by Turkey. Although the Turkish authorities control these areas effectively, they never intervened to stop the clashing or hold accountable fighters of the factions who were responsible for killing or injuring civilians, nor forcing a faction to compensate the material damages caused by internal fighting.<\/p>\n

    Based on the above, Hevdesti-Synergy Association recommends that:\u00a0 <\/strong><\/p>\n