Diminished by drought, the olive harvest is underway in Syria’s Kurdish-majority Afrin. Residents report fewer violations than in years past, but remain wary of the new authorities.
One year after the February 6 earthquake, tens of thousands of Syrian survivors are still homeless, without enough support to repair and rebuild their homes. Aid workers stress the importance of early recovery to facilitate returns and provide livelihoods.
Following the killing of five Kurds in Jenderes by Turkish-backed forces in March, HTS intervened in SNA territory for the second time in six months, underscoring al-Jolani’s ambitions of territorial expansion and highlighting his use of ethnic and religious minorities to make a case for himself.
Many residential buildings in northwestern Syria were already weakened by years of bombing or built in ways that did not meet engineering and construction standards when the February 6 earthquake struck, leaving them prone to collapse.
Rescue teams in several countries have mobilized to help Turkey rescue the victims of Monday’s devastating earthquake, but so far no aid or personnel have entered northwestern Syria, where residents are turning to displacement camps as a refuge.
