Stop the Turkish bombardment on the Tişrin Dam in the Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria (Rojava) or it will collapse

The Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria, that includes the Kurdish populated areas of Rojava, has stated that the Tişrin Dam at the Euphrates River is on the verge of collapse due to the intense attacks by Turkish military and affiliated jihadist-terorist groups. The administration emphasized that the destruction of this massive water resource in its region, with a capacity of 1.9 billion cubic meters, threatens the biological life in a long stretch of the Euphrates valley that is ecologically the most diverse landscape in that region. It has called on the international community to stand in solidarity before this major destruction takes place.

Syria’s Afrin farmers face heavy levies amid intensified SNA restrictions

For the sixth consecutive year, farmers and residents in Afrin region, Northwest Syria, face heavy royalties and restrictions from Turkish-backed armed opposition factions, aka the Syrian National Army (SNA). These practices have intensified during this year’s olive harvest season, targeting local agriculture, trade, and resources, which form the backbone of Afrin’s economy.

Interview: “They were even firing indiscriminately” – IDP Hassan Hassan after the Turkish-backed SNA’s attack on Shehba

Hassan Hassan is an English teacher and works with the NGO S.O.S. Afrin.  He is originally from Afrin and lived almost seven years in Shehba. His family and he were displaced to North and East Syria following the Turkish-backed Syrian National Army’s December 1 offensive to seize Shehba. He talks to RIC about his memories of the SNA’s attack, mass displacement from Shehba, the travel to Tabqa, and his situation having been now twice displaced.`

Explainer: Kurdish neighborhoods besieged in Aleppo

Two Kurdish neighborhoods in Aleppo, Sheikh Maqsoud and Ashrafiyeh, are currently besieged by Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) following the Islamist force’s unexpected advances and capture of Syria’s second-largest city from Bashar al-Assad’s Syrian Arab Army (SAA). These neighborhoods have maintained their autonomy from both the Assad government and the Islamist opposition since the start of the Syrian conflict, becoming a safe haven for those fleeing violence, persecution and violent repression elsewhere in Aleppo and Syria. In this explainer, Rojava Information Center (RIC) provides key information on the neighborhoods, their humanitarian and political significance, the previous violence they have endured, and the grave threat now facing these isolated neighborhoods.