Afrin… Cutting down olive trees continue by factions in Qara Jurne village

ARK News: A human rights organization working to document violations in the Kurdish region of Afrin reported on its main page of Facebook, on Saturday, 20.12.2020, that the logging processes are still continuing with the approaching of winter in the Afrin region in front of the sight and hearing of the Turkish occupation forces in spite of the protests by the people in front of the Turkish military headquarters during the past days, and we have indicated this twice without the responsible and concerned authorities in ordering their duties and investigating these crimes.

The organization added that, on Friday 18/12/2020, Malak Shah militiamen who are controlling the center of Shara town and the surrounding villages cut the thick branches of olive trees under the pretext of scavenging and sold them as firewood (about 150 trees) belonging to the Kurdish citizen Muhammad Hamdo, from Alke village of Shara town which is located near the shrine of Qara Jurne, and trees were cut down in the adjacent field under the pretext of scavenging, which also belongs to one of the residents of the village of Alke about 120 olive trees.

Sources also reported that areas in the Afrin region are experiencing a considerable hike in prices of fuel and other means of heating, as is the case every winter. Some Arab settlers are prompted to use unhealthy and unsafe means, resort to cutting down trees in the surrounding forests and bushes, or even trespass on other people’s properties.

In areas under the control of Turkish-backed factions in the Afrin region factions stationed at the region’s checkpoints share the residents and Arab settlers in the cutting down of trees in the forests and bushes in Sejju, Midanky, Nabi Hori, amid lack of supervision.

According to local sources, logs and other wood are sold in markets for more than 100 USD per ton, at a time when a family that uses only one wood-burner stove needs an average of two tons during winter, which is worth over 200 USD.

Sources pointed out that Turkish-backed factions exploit the people’s need for getting logs for heating by banning Kurdish residents from cutting down trees. However, these factions allow investors, wood dealers, and Arab settlers to cut down and sell trees in return for money share.

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