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.
Returns to Afrin increased following agreements between the SDF and Damascus, with some villages seeing more than 80 percent of their displaced Kurdish residents return. Others are waiting for an organized return with security guarantees.
Little has changed for Afrin’s Kurds, despite Damascus’ security forces entering on February 7. Violations persist, with returnees finding fighters or civilians occupying their homes and demanding hundreds of dollars to leave.
A car bombing in the eastern Aleppo city of Manbij killed at least 15 people on Monday. It was the seventh similar attack to hit the city since the Turkish-backed SNA seized it from the SDF in December, sparking accusations.
Twenty people were killed and injured when an AANES-sponsored protest convoy approached an area of active fighting around Syria’s Tishreen Dam on Wednesday and was targeted by Turkish aircraft. What happened, and why?
Since Turkish-backed factions took control of northern Aleppo at the start of December, more than 70,000 displaced people have returned to Afrin and its countryside, while others fled to northeastern Syria fearing abuses.
Kurdish and Arab residents of northeastern Syria described joy at the fall of the Assad regime, while views of the new authorities in Damascus and the future of SDF-held areas range from optimism to trepidation.
As HTS promises a new approach, Christians in Aleppo city are weighing assurances of protection against difficult memories. As opposition forces took control over the weekend, some fled, fearing the worst from Islamist factions.
The Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria (AANES) estimates 120,000 people have been displaced from areas of northern Aleppo captured by Turkish-backed opposition factions this week.
Syrians returning from Lebanon to opposition-held northwestern Syria find themselves in danger once more, as the area faces a military escalation by Russia and the Assad regime, alongside Syrian National Army (SNA) infighting.
