The people of Afrin who had to migrate to the Shehba region following the invasion attacks against Afrin by the invading Turkish state and their Al Qaeda, ISIS and Al Nusra gangs continue their resistance despite difficulties. Citizens live in half-demolished houses in the Shehba region where 150 to 200 thousand people from Afrin have migrated to. One of the people living in the ruins is Nazli Nebo, who lives in the rubble of a house in Shehba’s Ûm El Xosh village with her children.

FAMILY IN THE RUINS

Nazli Nebo said they built a life for themselves in the Shêxûrzê village of Afrin’s Bilbilê district after 4 years in the midst of war in Aleppo at the beginning of the Syrian conflict. She moved to Afrin first, and then to Ûm El Xoş village with the launch of the Turkish invasion attacks. To enter the half-demolished house, we had to pass under a fallen wall to find Nazli Nebo flash a victory sign as soon as she saw us.

Nazli Nebo and her family were gathered by the stove around a pot in the half-demolished house, which was damaged during the war with ISIS. There is one room that is unharmed in the house. In the livingroom there is only a straw mat, a mattress and some blankets. Those are the only possessions this family of 10, with 6 children, have. Meanwhile the children run around the ruins.

Nazli Nebo said their home in Shêxurzê was torn to the ground during the Turkish state’s invasion attacks and that is when they took off on the migration route. Nazli Nebo’s livestock were also confiscated by the gangs, and she stressed that they never bowed down to anybody and will continue to live and resist in dignity.

SCHOOLS ALSO FULL

When we arrived in the Ûm El Xoş village school, we saw many Kurdish and Arab families who migrated from Afrin’s Raco and Jindirese districts living together. Children’s voices in Arabic and Kurdish are mingled together. The desks have been removed from the classrooms and several families share each room. The picture here is not different from others. Straw mats on the floor, some blankets and a stove on the corner.

TURKISH STATE TARGETED ALL PEOPLE OF AFRIN

An Arab citizen named Şaban Hesen spoke to our cameras and stated that the Turkish state targeted all people of Afrin, and they were forced to migrate. Şaban Hesen said after they migrated, the Ûm El Xoş village commune opened this space up for them and are trying to fulfill their needs to a certain extent. Hesen said the Turkish state has its eye on their lands: “Erdoğan demands our land from us. But we won’t accept that.” Hesen said the threat of the Turkish state continues still and demanded that Shehba be declared a safe zone.

HOSTING PEOPLE OF AFRIN

The distance between the Ûm El Xoş village and the Marê town, held by the Turkish state and their allied gangs, is 500 to 600 meters. A journalist with extensive knowledge of the region, Nûrî Ednan, spoke about the intense clashes with ISIS gangs in Ûm El Xoş 2 years ago, and stated that the village is now hosting the people of Afrin who have been pushed out of their homes due to attacks by the Turkish state and their allied gangs.

SHOULD BE DECLARED A SAFE ZONE

Ednan said attacks by the Turkih state and their gangs have been continuous against Ûm El Xoş and that the citizens who had to move here don’t use some parts of the village as they fall within range of the gangs. “But,” Nûrî said, “despite all, the people have not strayed far from Afrin. There should be areas that are secured for the people of Afrin who have had to migrate into the region.”