Update December 4 – Northern Syria Offensive

Highlights - As displaced families continue to pour in to NES, the DAANES estimates that numbers of IDPs will soon reach 120,000. - Critical shortages of essential supplies, food, water, medicines and accommodation for IDPs. - SNA commits…

Interview: Workers discuss the economic impact of Corona in NES

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A logistics worker, a day laborer and a housewife from Hemo village, near Qamishlo, talk about the economic hardship they have been facing since the Corona outbreak. They were interviewed 25 May 2020. Suleiman Hussein Suleiman, logistics…
Kongra Star

Explainer: Kongra Star, the Women’s Congress

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Kongra Star, which means “Star Congress” (in reference to the ancient Mesopotamian goddess, Ishtar), is the congress of the women’s movement in North and East Syria. It was first established in 2004 as Yêkitiya Star (Star Union),…

Explainer: TEV-DEM – Unions and Counter-Power

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TEV-DEM was founded in 2011 to build up the democratic system of communes and assemblies. This is the role that it played in the previous system, in the three initial cantons: Afrin, Jazeera and Kobane. In Manbij, Raqqa, Tabqa and Deir ez-Zor…

Translation: North and East Syria’s Anti-Terrorism Act used to try local ISIS suspects

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Note: this is the original piece of legislation used to try local ISIS suspects captured by the Syrian Democratic Forces or Asayish (internal security) in North and East Syria. It is based on internationally-recognized Syrian law, but has…

Interview: Adil Haji Hassan, kidnapped and released for ransom by SNA in Sere Kaniye

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Adil Haji Hassan is an IDP who fled from Sere Kaniye during the Turkish invasion in October 2019. He was interviewed in Qamishlo on 8 May 2020. Syrian National Army fighters and Turkish soldiers after the invasion of Afrin, 18 March 2018 My…

Human Rights Watch – تركيا/سوريا: المياه سلاح خلال وباء عالمي؟

Women hold stacks of bread as they walk along an empty street, as restrictions are imposed as measure to prevent the spread of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) in Qamishli, Syria March 23, 2020. REUTERS/Rodi Said - RC2VPF9DRWOE Published…

Report: anti-ISIS arrests and raids drop as tensions over COVID-19 rise

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Arrests of ISIS members in North and East Syria dropped to almost nothing in March, despite continued attacks March saw decreases across the board - in terms of attacks, raids, deaths and arrests - suggesting COVID-19 has distracted SDF…
ISIS sleeper cell arrested in Manbij

Report: One year on from ISIS’ defeat, sleeper-cell attacks remain a deadly threat

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It’s been a year since ISIS’ final territorial defeat by the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) and International Coalition in Baghouz on 23 March. But a comparison of the year-on-year data shows ISIS remain as potent a threat as ever,…