{"id":5753,"date":"2025-10-09T16:41:23","date_gmt":"2025-10-09T14:41:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/hevdesti.org\/?p=5753"},"modified":"2025-10-09T16:43:38","modified_gmt":"2025-10-09T14:43:38","slug":"deferred-return-six-years-of-displacement-and-the-absence-of-justice-in-ras-al-ayn-sere-kaniye-and-tall-abyad-gire-spi","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/hevdesti.org\/en\/deferred-return-six-years-of-displacement-and-the-absence-of-justice-in-ras-al-ayn-sere-kaniye-and-tall-abyad-gire-spi\/","title":{"rendered":"Deferred Return: Six Years of Displacement and the Absence of Justice in Ras al-Ayn\/Ser\u00ea Kaniy\u00ea and Tall Abyad\/Gir\u00ea Sp\u00ee"},"content":{"rendered":"

Introduction: <\/strong><\/h3>\n

Every year on 9 October, the displaced residents of Ras al-Ayn\/Ser\u00ea Kaniy\u00ea and Tall Abyad\/Gir\u00ea Sp\u00ee commemorate the fall of their two cities under Turkish occupation, carried out with the participation of Syrian armed factions affiliated with the Syrian National Army (SNA), following the military offensive known as \u201cPeace Spring Operation\u201d, which was promoted under the pretext of creating a \u201cSafe Zone<\/em>\u201d. Yet from the very first days, the reality on the ground revealed catastrophic consequences: erosion of security and stability, and the continuation of grave human rights violations amid an effective absence of the rule of law and the lack of any effective accountability mechanisms.<\/p>\n

Despite the major political and security transformation the country has undergone since the fall of the \u201cAssad regime\u201d on 8 December 2024, and the formation of the Transitional Government\u2014which were accompanied by the return of more than 1.76 million Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) to their areas<\/a>\u2014over 150,000 of the original inhabitants of Ras al-Ayn\/Ser\u00ea Kaniy\u00ea and Tall Abyad\/Gir\u00ea Sp\u00ee remain forcibly displaced. Around 40,000 of them continue to live in deteriorating humanitarian conditions in camps and collective shelters that lack UN recognition and support<\/a>. They remain unable to return due to ongoing violations committed by SNA factions, under the watch, and in some cases with the participation, of Turkish forces.<\/p>\n

Over the past six years, systematic and widespread violations of the International Humanitarian Law (IHL) and the International Human Rights Law (IHRL) have been<\/a> perpetrated by Turkish forces and the Syrian factions they back. These violations include extrajudicial killings, summary executions, arbitrary arrests, torture and other forms of ill-treatment, in addition to widespread seizure of property belonging to original residents\u2014Kurds, Arabs, Armenians, Syriacs\/Assyrians, Yazidis, Chechens, and others.<\/p>\n

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Between October 2019 and October 2025, Synergy Association for Victims documented the killing of 70 civilians\u2014including 8 women and an infant\u2014the arrest of at least 890 persons, including 92 women and 56 children, and the torture of 766 detainees, 7 of whom died as a result. The Association also recorded 346 cases of enforced disappearance, the fates of whom remain unknown. During this period, the area further witnessed 81 bombings that killed 147 civilians and injured 320 others, as well as 74 armed clashes\/internal conflicts among SNA factions, resulting in the deaths of 6 civilians and injuries to more than 50 others.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

Alongside these developments, profound demographic changes have undermined one of the key pillars of diversity in the two areas. More than 85% of the population of Ras al-Ayn\/Ser\u00ea Kaniy\u00ea was forcibly displaced; the Kurdish population declined from roughly 70,000 people to fewer than 50 individuals; the presence of Armenians, Syriacs\/Assyrians, and Yazidis dwindled to just a handful. The Arab presence was also noticeably affected. In Tall Abyad\/Gir\u00ea Sp\u00ee, the Kurdish presence contracted to a few families after having constituted close to 30% of the population.<\/p>\n

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Despite growing hopes following 8 December 2024 for the gradual return of displaced persons to several Syrian areas (Rural Damascus, Idlib, Homs, Aleppo, among others), such returns did not include Ras al-Ayn\/Ser\u00ea Kaniy\u00ea and Tall Abyad\/Gir\u00ea Sp\u00ee (nor Afrin and other areas). These regions have remained excluded from the conditions necessary for a voluntary, safe, and dignified return that safeguards rights and dignity, due to the persistence of violations and the absence of effective guarantees for the restitution of housing, land, property, and protection.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

Return of the Displaced: A Declared Commitment, Yet Ongoing Obstruction<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Upon signing the 10 March 2025 Agreement<\/a> between the Syrian Transitional Government and the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), Clause V enshrined a moral and political commitment to the return of all displaced persons to their towns and villages, and their protection ensured by the Syrian state. But turning this commitment into reality has lagged far behind six years of suffering: there are no safe access arrangements, no protective environment, and no effective mechanisms for reclaiming homes or property.<\/p>\n

\u00a0Seven months after the agreement, the absence of tangible progress regarding the displaced from Ras al-Ain\/Ser\u00ea Kaniy\u00ea and Tell Abyad\/Gir\u00ea Sp\u00ee underscores the urgent need to prioritize a safe, dignified, and fair return\u2014irrespective of political bargaining or temporary security arrangements<\/p>\n

In practice, both areas remain under the control of Turkish forces and their allied factions\u2014formally incorporated into the structure of the new Syrian Ministry of Defense, yet effectively supported and directed by Ankara. This reality has left the Transitional Government with limited real authority in these areas, while no concrete measures have been taken to secure housing and property rights or to prepare the conditions for a safe return.<\/p>\n

The impact of these violations extends far beyond the two areas, affecting the entire al-Hasakah Governorate through the weaponization of water<\/a>. Since Turkish control of the area in October 2019, Alouk Water Station, East of Ras al-Ayn\/Ser\u00ea Kaniy\u00ea has been deliberately and repeatedly shut down<\/a>, depriving<\/a> around 800,000 residents of al-Hasakah and its countryside of potable water and sanitation services\u2014a flagrant violation of the population\u2019s right to safe drinking water and adequate sanitation.<\/p>\n

<\/h3>\n

 <\/p>\n

Legal Framework and Responsibilities<\/strong><\/h3>\n