Targeting the infrastructure with attacks against the people of North and East Syria, the occupying Turkish state continues to pursue a policy that threatens life in the region. These attacks affect all areas of life, especially water, energy and education services, negatively affecting civilian life and making it difficult for the people to meet their basic needs. The scene that emerged during the Turkish state's attacks on North and East Syria on 13 January continues with the attacks launched on 23 October.

During the attacks launched by the Turkish army against the infrastructure of North and East Syria on 13 January, electricity stations were completely disabled. Dirbêsiyê power station was attacked 2 times, Amûdê power station once, Qamişlo power station 2 times, Tirbêspiyê power station 2 times. As a result of these attacks, 4 power stations were completely left out of service.

All 12 tribunes of the Suwayda power station, which is the centre of the electricity station, became unusable, while the transformers in each tribune and the small stations that help the tribunes to work were completely disabled.

The Suwayda gas station, which was attacked four times by the occupying Turkish state, was also left out of service. In this way, LPG gas production also stopped completely.

As a result of the destruction caused by the attacks of the Turkish state, 2,230 villages in Dêrîk, Girkê Legê, Rimêlan, Çilaxa, Tirbêspiye, Qamişlo, Amûdê, Til Koçer and Til Hemis could not receive electricity. The power station that supplies electricity to 300 villages of Ain Issa in the Euphrates Canton also went out of service, causing these villages to be plunged into darkness.

As a result of the targeted attacks on the electricity station in Kobanê city centre, the station providing 30mW electricity and supplying electricity to 360 villages of Kobanê went out of service. In addition to Ain Issa and Kobanê, 660 villages in these regions were left without electricity.

Another city adversely affected by these attacks was Tirbespiye. Tirbêspiyê, which has a total of 182 villages including 45 villages in Mashuk town, 23 villages in Hilwa town, 63 villages in Abu Ferah town, 45 villages in Til Maruf town and 6 villages in Beyazê Biçûk-Mezin, Gir Şêran, Gir Dahol, Abu Hecara, Girkê Şamo, were left without electricity and water. In neighbourhoods with large generators, electricity was supplied for only 5 hours a day.

Electricity-powered water stations and wells were also halted by the attacks.  Only 124 of the 450 drinking water wells in the Cîzre canton could remain active. The Sefan Station, which meets the water needs of Cizre canton, was also rendered unusable due to the attacks. This water station used to supply water to the people of Deir ez-Zor, Girkê Legê, Çil Axa, Tirbêspiyê and Qamişlo. The Hilêliyê water station, which serves 75 percent of the people of Qamişlo, also became inoperable due to the targeting of the power station. The Ceqceq and Uwecê water stations, which meet the water needs of the city, could not pump water due to the lack of electricity.

12 martyred, 27 wounded

In Qamişlo, a grain and civilian centre was bombed by armed drones. In Tirbespiyê, Ûdê oil field was bombed 6 times in a row by reconnaissance aircraft, Seîde petrol station was bombed 3 times by warplanes, Babasî petrol station was bombed 5 times in a row and a petrol station was targeted by UCAVs. In Amudê, an electricity station, a bakery and Hasad village were bombed 2 times by drones. In Dêrîk, gas factories in Siwêdiyê were targeted twice, and a civilian factory was targeted 4 times by drones. Oil wells in Rimêlan were bombed 11 times, while a civilian agricultural project was also targeted by drones. In Til Temir, the villages of Til Werd Xerbî, Xirbet El Shaîr, Rebîat, El Tewîle, Til Tewîl, Um El Kêf, El Ewce, Qebir Kebîr a Xerbî and Dawûdiyê were targeted by 70 artillery and 15 mortar attacks.

While the power plant in Kobanê was targeted 3 times by UCAVs, a bakery was bombed 3 times by drones and went out of service. In Ain Issa, the villages of Mişêrfa Şerqî, Eyn Îsa Camp, Dewalib, Sîdon and Muelek were bombed. The villages of Şealê, Xirbet Şealê, Hirbil, Um El Qura, Um El Hoş, Şêx İsa, Miniq and Tinibê in Til Rıfat in Afrin-Shehba Canton were systematically targeted with more than 160 mortars. In the attacks carried out by the Turkish state within 24 hours, 12 people, including 2 children, were martyred and 27 people, including a 3-year-old girl, were injured.

Thousands of students deprived of education

The occupying Turkish state also targeted 5 schools in the Cizîrê Canton during its attacks against the region on 23-25 December. According to the statement made by the Education and Learning Board of the Democratic Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria on 28 December 2023, 712 schools in Cîzre, Euphrates and Afrin-Shehba Cantons suspended education. Thus, 89,418 students were deprived of education.

The 2024-2025 academic year started on 8 September for primary, secondary and high school students, and on 6 October for university students. Approximately 4,775 students are studying at universities in North and East Syria. In addition, 605 students enrolled for specialised training in different disciplines at the academies, including 494 students at the Qamişlo, Hesekê and Shehba Teacher Training Schools affiliated to the Education and Training Board of North and East Syria, 45 students at the Shahba and Hesekê Medical Academies, and 66 students at the School of Arts.

More than 860 thousand primary, middle and high school students started their education in schools where 41 thousand teachers work. There are 3,063 primary schools, 179 secondary schools, 46 high schools and 4,120 schools in total with various mergers. However, the number of active schools is 4,100 due to the schools being damaged in the war and cannot be used. Therefore, the stability and security of the region is targeted by the Turkish state’s attacks on the infrastructure of the region. Due to these attacks, more than 865,380 students continue their education under the occupation attacks of the Turkish state. Therefore, they cannot receive a healthy education.

Bakeries also targeted

On 13 January, the people in the North-East Syria region, who were left without electricity and water because of the occupying Turkish state’s attacks, also faced the problem of accessing bread at the bakery. The bakeries, which were left without electricity as a result of the attacks in which fuel centres were also targeted, had to use diesel-powered generators. Due to the scarcity of fuel, the largest bakery in Qamishlo city also had difficulty in meeting the bread needs of the people. At that time, the bakery used 27 tonnes of flour per day and prepared approximately 31,000 bags of bread, i.e. approximately 279,000 loaves of bread. Due to the attacks that started on 23 October, bakeries operating in the region are worried about not being able to provide good service to the public. As a result of these attacks, a bakery in Kobanê was directly targeted 3 times and went out of service, while the bakery in the east of Amûdê was severely damaged.