This story begins in Afrin.

Afrin is a painful word for those who call it home, because they haven’t been there for a long time. Since the Turkish occupation in 2018, many have been living in a camp set up near to Afrin, in Shehba, staying as close as they could. Last winter, they were again forced out by the war waged by jihadist mercenaries, who have now been incorporated into the Syrian army.  Many of the people stayed in a new camp in Tabqa. We visited them there, were invited into their tents, and heard about the hardships they face: the cold in winter, the heat in summer, but also their determination to stay together and one day return to Afrin.  This winter, with Tabqa being attacked and taken by the Syrian transitional government and their jihadist mercenary gangs, these people were violently forced to leave once again. In the far northwest of Syria, the Afrin region was liberated from the Ba’ath regime in 2012 during the Rojava Revolution. As throughout the liberated territory, the people themselves established democratic institutions of self-governance. Since then, society had organized itself into communes and councils, a community economy was established through cooperatives, and a sense of community was developed through education.

“This means that whenever a decision was made, the commune was involved, and for problem solving as well. The commune creates the organization of society; we give it the greatest importance of all institutions and councils. Everyone finds a place in the commune,” says the women that are active in the institutions of self-governed refugee camp in Tabqa. This democratic system, in which every individual participates in decision-making processes, so that these are made in the interest of the common good, represents the people’s of North and East Syria vision of a free life. This life is based on democratic and ecological values, with the necessity of women’s liberation and gender equality taking center stage.

The women continue their story of life in Afrin: “At the beginning of the Rojava Revolution in 2012/2013, Afrin lived in a self-sufficient circular economy. People fed themselves from the land that surrounded them. Every house had trees in the yard and gardens. When growing plants for sale, chemical fertilizers are used to increase profits, but there was no such thing in Afrin. When the women grew food at home, they met the needs of their households and perhaps also those of their neighbors and friends. Afrin was isolated (besieged), and we could have survived like that for another ten years. Why? Because every house had its own garden that could provide for itself. The women were instrumental in this, cultivating and watering the land. They planted flowers here and tomatoes there. A delicate rose here and beans next to it. The people of Afrin grew everything themselves. In addition, every house had sheep for yogurt, milk, and cheese. And these, too, were mostly cared for by the mothers.”

The women speak with pride about the natural circular economy and the importance of self-sufficiency in times of war and siege. The role of women and mothers in this, as the bearers of this communal life, is paramount for them. They speak of how green their homeland of Afrin is, in contrast to the arid landscape where they are now trying to rebuild their lives.

“You’d think you couldn’t plant anything [here], but we’ve planted everything”.

They don’t mean just any green, not lush grass green or dark fir green, but the gray-green of olive trees. Afrin is famous for its olive trees and oil production. The Turkish army, which violently disrupted communal life in Afrin in January 2018, called its military offensive “Operation Olive Branch.” With the newly created mercenary group “Syrian National Army” (SNA), which is intended to implement Turkish interests on the other side of the border in Syria, an offensive war against Afrin began on January 20th.

“During the Afrin War, there were suddenly warplanes in the sky above us. We had never seen anything like it in our lives. We had no experience of war,” the women recount about that day. Turkish interests were focused on defending a concept of homeland that allowed only one ethnic group, one language, one culture, and one religion to be at home. To establish this understanding, the Turkish state was built on the foundation of denying Kurdish society, language, ethnicity, and culture. The vibrant community life that developed through the Rojava Revolution on the other side of the Turkish border threatened to disprove this concept, especially since it was led by a Kurdish initiative. The women from Afrin tell how, through the shared resistance of women, ethnic divisions were overcome, as they assumed a leading role for the entire society.

The truth is, women have led life for thousands of years. But we, in the midst of it all, faced many difficulties. Whether we like it or not, in culture, religion, everywhere there are customs and traditions. The efforts and work of the women’s movement became a model and a source of strength for us. Within society, as women, to build autonomy among women, to get to know ourselves and liberate ourselves… and with this become pioneers for all women worldwide… In Afrin lived mainly Kurdish and Arab women, a few Turkmen families as well. When we talked about building up women’s communes, it felt as if the whole society was moving toward a line of correction. Society could take a deep breath… could breathe more easily. We made educations about the defense of women’s rights. Freedom is not easy… Women’s liberation means women must get to know themselves. We needed women’s communes because in them women could share their pain and suffering caused by oppressive traditions, fathers, brothers, or husbands with each other.

Two months after the start of the war of aggression, on March 18, 2018, the Turkish-backed SNA began its occupation of Afrin. They looted villages, raped, murdered, kidnapped, tortured, and committed numerous massacres of civilians. Speaking the Kurdish language became banned and persecuted, and the historically significant olive groves were burned. Thousands of people were forced to leave their home. Since Afrin had become a refuge for many fleeing previous wars, such as the ISIS attacks in Shengal, this displacement was the second in the lives of many. The people of Afrin did not give up their goal of returning home and therefore only traveled as far as necessary. Many went to Aleppo or Shehba. Shehba was also surrounded by the Turkish occupation and the totalitarian Syrian Assad regime and subjected to an economic embargo and constant attacks. The thousands of internally displaced people from Afrin did not give up and developed a vision of a free, communal life in the refugee camps.

After our arrival [in Shehba], we spent three months visiting families in tents. We went from house to house and talked about how women could support themselves, identify problems early on, and keep their children and the surrounding area clean. Because when women are well-prepared and empowered, they can provide for the whole family. Afterwards, we met in the community council. We discussed our situation, the war situation, how we had been displaced, and how we wanted to organize ourselves in the future.

In the refugee camps, self-defense was also organized. “If a stranger arrived (to the camp), someone from the self-defense committee would immediately check who it was. Now, three-quarters of the members of the self-defense committee are women. In general, the women are the ones who do the most work. Despite all the difficulties in the tents, especially for families with children, the women are resisting, organizing themselves, and defending themselves and their families.” Self-defense encompasses many roles. Some stand guard, go on patrol, and learn how to use weapons. Others “said they were needed at home, but they would inform the others if they noticed any problems.” Their aim was not only to organize daily life well in the war situation, but above all to create a future that could overcome the war.

We had set up a nursery in Shehba. Everything was ready for the children’s first day. The teachers had painted pictures on the wall. They asked, ‘Should we paint a car?’ I said, ‘Everything we paint should be from nature.’ They asked, ‘Why?’ and I said, ‘So that the children, both girls and boys, can observe nature and find peace. So that they grow up with love. When they observe nature, love will develop within them. Then they will also love their surroundings in general.’ The teachers agreed. Whoever loves nature loves everything. But we had to give up the daycare center and leave Shehba.

For seven years, the people from Afrin had lived in Shehba, continuing their self-governance in the camps and defending these values against the Turkish attacks. “When your hands plant something in the earth, you build knowledge and energy. When you are separated from that… Have you seen what they are doing to the olive trees in Afrin? They are cutting down the olive trees. Have you seen it? You cannot separate the women of Afrin from nature. People think that nothing grows in the camps. But we have planted everything. To be separated from that is like being separated from your own beauty, the love of life, of your spirit.”

When the Assad regime was overthrown in the fall of 2024, Turkey seized the opportunity and attacked the region with air and ground strikes by the SNA and the Turkish military. On December 2, 2024, the refugee camps were evacuated, and the people were forced to flee once again.

“This has an impact on people. Women are affected the most. Because they are often tied to the home, taking care of the household, raising the children. Whether everything necessary for life is available or not, whether there is work or not, whether everything is running smoothly or not… it affects them greatly. Some problems and difficulties are experienced as a result of this escape,” one of the women explains.

Another woman adds:

When we had to flee Shehba and came here, think about it, it was the middle of winter. We were in tents in the cold. But the women resisted and defended themselves in the camps, because a woman who isn’t organized and can’t defend herself, can’t live under such conditions. […] Together, the women support each other and encourage one another to defy the conditions.

Some families went to the cities and found work, others moved to other refugee camps, like the women interviewed in Tabqa, and still others moved to Aleppo. In Aleppo, they were integrated into the neighborhood communities in the self-governed districts of Sheikh Maqsoud and Ashrafieh and became involved in the committees. The remaining parts of Aleppo were under the control of the new Syrian Transitional Government, which was formed after the Islamist militia Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) seized power in the fall of 2024. Because of their location, the two self-governing districts played a significant role and repeatedly were the scene of conflict. The transitional government fueled divisions and incitement, especially against religious and ethnic minorities in the self-governing districts. In a negotiation process for the integration of the self-defense units of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) into the transitional government, an agreement was reached on March 10, 2025. The goal of democratization should create a Syria in which all its inhabitants can find a home together.

Point 5 of the agreement states: “Guaranteeing the return of all displaced Syrians to their cities and villages and guaranteeing their protection by the Syrian state.”

And point 7: “Rejection of calls for division, hate speech, and attempts to sow discord among the population groups of Syria.”

Aleppo played a special role in the implementation of the agreement and the decentralization of Syria. The Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) entrusted the security of the self-governed neighborhoods to internal security forces rooted in the community self-defense committees. In April 2025, the civilian council of the neighborhoods signed an agreement with the Syrian Transitional Government. This agreement confirmed that the two neighborhoods would remain self-governed while still being recognized as part of Aleppo, respecting the area’s social and cultural identity. The roads to the rest of Aleppo were to be opened, and responsibility for the security of the neighborhoods was to be shared.

Toward the end of the year, it became increasingly clear that the processes of democratization and decentralization in Syria would not be implemented quickly, but instead were being blocked. The resulting tensions were particularly evident in the neighborhoods of Aleppo. In December, government forces blocked access roads to the neighborhoods, hindering the delivery of supplies. This was followed by military clashes between the government and internal security forces following attacks on public demonstrations. On January 6, 2026, mercenary militias loyal to the Syrian transitional government and Turkey launched a targeted attack on civilians and infrastructure using heavy weapons. They murdered and destroyed using inhumane methods. Many people left their neighborhoods, venturing once again into the unknown. Others heeded the call of the municipalities and councils and decided to remain in their neighborhoods and resist. The self-governing administration’s internal security forces defended the neighborhoods and resisted for days, whilst jihadist groups shows their complete distortion of life, capturing civilians, mutilating and desecrating the bodies of the murdered. Women, in particular, experienced violence at the hands of the attackers’ fascist jihadist mentality. This war in Syria is taking homeland in all its material sense of life, and additionally attacking a way of defining home as something alive, something that can lead a way to peace for the whole world. The people in Rojava despite the tears in their eyes, despite the pain that every war brings, know for certain: only a life of resistance can bring peace to their home. Even after eight years of occupation of Afrin, the people are still determined to return. “Everyone says the militias have taken over Afrin, cut down the trees, killed, occupied, and destroyed everything. But we want to return to our land. We will make Afrin green again, just like it was before. We women have this belief.”

One of the women concludes the conversation, and another adds:

I say, when I return to Afrin, I will go to the top of a mountain, build a mud house, and live there. We will be self-sufficient and not abandon this culture ever again. We will return to our culture, our way of life, so that we can easily put the years we had to leave Afrin behind us.

The geography of Kurdistan is among the regions where policies of ecocide are implemented most intensely. Water is used both as a tool of demographic transformation and as a security instrument; militarily restricted zones are opened to mining projects; highlands that have been used for animal husbandry for thousands of years are turned into solar power plant sites; ancient cities such as Hasankeyf and Zeugma are submerged under dam waters, among many other practices.

Announcing its establishment at a workshop held in 2024 in the German city of Freiburg with the participation of dozens of ecology activists, the Europe–Kurdistan Ecology Movement (TEV-EKO) aims to expose policies and practices of ecocide in Kurdistan to the public through the perspective of an ecological society, to build organization at the local level, and to develop international cooperation in the field of ecology.

TEV-EKO Co-Spokesperson Fatoş Göksungur spoke to ANF about the movement’s founding objectives, its goals, the visibility of ecocide policies in Kurdistan, and its priorities for the period ahead.

Could you summarize TEV-EKO’s founding objectives and its main areas of work so far? What distinguishes TEV-EKO’s approach to the ecological struggle?

To understand TEV-EKO, it is first necessary to ask why it emerged. Our main point of departure was the paradigm reshaped by Abdullah Öcalan through the system of democratic confederalism. Within this framework, democratic modernity is constructed as a way of life resting on three fundamental pillars: an ecological society, a democratic society, and a women’s freedom, based society. One of these three pillars is the ecological dimension.

When viewed holistically, it becomes clear that none of these can exist without the others. A democratic society is only possible if there is an ecological society; likewise, a truly democratic society cannot exist without a women’s freedom, based social structure. It is evident that one cannot be sustained without the other.

From around 2005 onward, as organizing efforts developed on the basis of this new paradigm, the weakness of organization in the ecological field became increasingly visible. Despite the fact that the dirty war waged by the state against Kurdish society in Kurdistan has included ecocide as one of its dimensions, the focus largely remained on questions of status and politics. As a result, policies of ecocide did not receive the attention they deserved.

In Europe, there was an additional distance created by being physically removed from Kurdistan. Here, too, the issue of status was approached mainly through an administrative and political lens or, to put it differently, through a discourse of political status detached from the ecosystem itself. Because of these inadequate approaches within our organizational framework, the need for organizing in the field of ecology began to impose itself more forcefully.

In 2023, at the Congress of the Kurdistan Democratic Communities in Europe (KCDK-E), a decision was taken to establish a committee focused on ecology, and we assumed responsibility for this work. In a sense, this was also a form of self-criticism for not having sufficiently foregrounded ecology during the period in which we served as co-chairs. From July 2023 onward, we began ecological organizing in Europe at the committee level. The committee initially started with five people and gradually expanded through discussions with others. From the outset, we emphasized that what distinguishes us from other ecological movements is the need to organize specifically within the field of social ecology. In line with this perspective, we began forming committees in various countries up until December 2024.

Finally, at a workshop we organized in December 2024, with the participation of activists from all organized fields within KCDK-E in Europe, we officially announced the establishment of TEV-EKO.

What are the most visible examples of the long-standing ecological destruction in Kurdistan? How does this devastation affect the daily life and cultural continuity of the Kurdish people?

Abdullah Öcalan has defined ecological struggle as something that “must be the most radical form of struggle.” This assessment is crucial when viewed against the backdrop of the state’s war policies. Over the past fifty years in Kurdistan, thousands of villages have been forcibly evacuated and millions of Kurds have been displaced. This has meant not only forced migration, but also the severing of the Kurdish people’s bond with their land. The burning of forests signifies both the destruction of Kurdistan’s nature, and the eradication of its endemic plant diversity.

Beyond this, there are also policies of ecocide carried out under military and security justifications. The mountains of Kurdistan are bombed, and Kurdish villagers are displaced, forced to migrate both to metropolitan centers in Turkey and to Europe. In other words, under the pretext of war, a comprehensive ecocide policy is being implemented that targets Kurdistan’s air, water, soil, nature, forests, and all living beings inhabiting these lands.

At the same time, areas closed to civilians under the labels of “special security zones” or “military restricted zones” are being transformed by the state into mining sites, hydroelectric power plant projects, and dam construction areas. While policies aimed at altering the demographic structure of Kurdistan are pursued on one hand, an integrated ecocide strategy is implemented on the other through dams and mining operations.

One of the most striking examples of this today can be seen in the mining sites in Şırnak (Şirnex). The near-total plundering of the natural environment in Dersim, and perhaps even more visibly and before the eyes of the world, the uprooting and transfer of thousands-year-old olive trees in Afrin (Efrin), stand as stark examples. Quite literally, the olive trees of Afrin have been stolen. The olive tree is significant both as a source of livelihood and as a symbol of harmony with nature.

In addition, dam policies imposed across Kurdistan are highly conspicuous. One of the most fundamental strategies pursued today is the use of water as both a security tool and a weapon. The Tigris (Dicle) and Euphrates (Fırat) rivers are two major waterways with the capacity to sustain Mesopotamia and perhaps much of the Middle East. Yet due to regional war policies, water is used as a weapon against Rojava, while in Northern Kurdistan (Bakur), dams are used to redirect water flows, submerging numerous historic cities.

The flooding of Hasankeyf, Samsat, Zeugma, Urfa (Riha), Halfeti, and surrounding villages represents some of the clearest examples of the ecocide policies and practices imposed on Kurdistan.

When issues such as forest fires, dam projects, and the mining activities you mentioned come to the fore, how does TEV-EKO build solidarity mechanisms and monitor these processes?

When we established and announced TEV-EKO in Europe, we defined our work around four main principles.

First, we aimed to promote social ecology consciousness as a way of life and understanding within assemblies and administrative structures in all areas where we are organized, and among all people from Kurdistan living in Europe.

Second, we set out to bring policies of ecocide in Kurdistan onto the agenda in Europe as well, and to carry out struggle around this issue.

Third, we are facing a global ecological crisis today. The planet we live on is being subjected entirely to the exploitation and plunder of capitalist modernity, to the point where even people’s daily lives are being poisoned. In this sense, building common ground and cooperation with ecological movements operating at the global level is one of our priority objectives.

The fourth principle and the most comprehensive and decisive one, is our effort to share Abdullah Öcalan’s paradigm of an ecological society with ecological movements worldwide, while also transforming this paradigm into a field of struggle and consciousness within our own organizational structure.

On this basis, an organizational framework was formed and continues to develop. Over our two years of organizing, have we been able to create sufficient sensitivity toward ecocide policies in Kurdistan? We are still far from where we need to be. But we are an ecology movement that acts with this awareness and bases its organizing efforts on building consciousness around it.

We emphasize this awareness particularly in the public meetings we hold and wherever we go, especially when responding to the question of why we organized TEV-EKO in the first place. One of the fundamental reasons is to bring ecocide policies, not only in Northern Kurdistan, but across all four parts of Kurdistan and the ecological destruction caused by capitalist modernity to the agenda, to explain them to our own society, and to work toward building this collective awareness.

TEV-EKO also carries out a number of digital campaigns. In your view, what kinds of strategies are needed to make ecocide in Kurdistan visible at the international level?

The ecological struggle will increasingly be carried out through campaigns in the period ahead. At present, one of the most urgent issues in Kurdistan is the embargo imposed on Rojava, and this has still not been lifted. Rojava is known as a major grain-producing region, a place where seeds are sown extensively, the land is cultivated intensively, and wheat production is at its highest levels. It is also one of the most important centers in terms of soil fertility across Kurdistan. Yet today, water is being used as a weapon against Rojava, and a food embargo is simultaneously being imposed.

At the same time, with the Peace and Democratic Society process now underway, our hope for the coming year is that ecological problems will be addressed through a social ecology perspective. This means dismantling an approach that treats water, food, seeds, trees, olives, and the nature of Kurdistan as hostages and instruments of war, and instead building an ecological way of life on a more democratic foundation, one shaped by society itself and rooted in its own needs.

The Democratic Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria (DAANES) has established a new special unit to protect the environment. The Environmental Protection Forces were created by the Internal Security Forces (Asayish) in close coordination with the Regional Environmental Agency. The aim is to systematically protect nature and curb environmental crimes in the region.

The new structure was established in line with the decisions made at the annual meeting of the Environment Committee of North and East Syria on December 15. The official presentation of the new structure took place on Monday at the Environmental Agency building in the canton of Raqqa. Representatives of the new unit, delegates from regional environmental assemblies, and the co-chairs of the Environmental Agency attended the event.

In his speech, Ibrahim el-Esed, co-chair of the Environmental Agency, emphasized the importance of consistent environmental monitoring. He said that the past few years had left a significant mark on the environment in Syria as a whole, and in northern and eastern Syria in particular. The region faces a multitude of environmental challenges that require active action, he added.

Jasim al-Dhaif, a senior representative of the new unit, explained that the environmental protection forces are not only responsible for enforcing environmental regulations, but also take preventive and educational measures. The unit is being set up on the basis of clearly defined ecological criteria established by the Environmental Agency.

The new structure is to be present in all cities and cantons in northern and eastern Syria in the future. Its tasks include combating poaching, preventing illegal logging, and protecting soil, air, and water. Patrols and checks are to be carried out in cooperation with the Environmental Agency in protected areas, forests, and along rivers.

Al-Dhaif pointed out that the unit would be adequately staffed and would be strengthened and expanded from 2026 onwards through a strategic development program. A particular focus will also be placed on preparing for natural disasters. In future, the unit will also be able to respond to emergencies such as floods or forest fires around the clock.

With the establishment of Environmental Protection Forces, the Autonomous Administration aims to establish environmental protection as an integral part of social security. Cooperation with local institutions will help to ensure a healthy and sustainable environment throughout northern and eastern Syria in the long term.

Everything that is left over is later used as compost to strengthen the plants outside, because here, nothing is simply waste—and everything is used. Most of the people working here are women, due to their natural connection to nature. One of the women working here explains: “Women are strongly connected to nature and society; they are the ones who build, organize, and defend life. As women, we feel that plants are part of us, and we work and live accordingly.”

The Center opened in Qamişlo in 2022, inspired by the ideas of Abdullah Öcalan and as part of the Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria and the Kurdish women’s movement. Research into natural medicine began years earlier, and a great deal of experience and knowledge has been gathered, tested, and applied.

Often, knowledge about the healing properties of plants lies hidden within society. Patients here often come back to share new knowledge, or to express their surprise at what plants can be used for beyond the kitchen. International visitors are also constantly amazed at what is more than just weeds in their garden (at home). For example, dandelions and chicory contain valuable ingredients, but this knowledge has been lost in many parts of the world.

Outside is the heart of the Center. Here, the work revolves around the plants and the garden, which is lovingly tended with great care. People are at the service of the plants, which marks a new relationship with nature being established. The more effort and love that is put into the plants, the more they can be used for medicine. However, it is not about producing something, but rather about building a new life in a very practical way. The love for the plants is not based on anything artificial. It is based on a love for life and nature. Abdullah Öcalan’s ideas are put into practice here in an attempt to a new ecological way – a life in balance between humans and nature. Jasmin, an internationalist, says that: “Experiencing the women’s revolution here is something very beautiful and meaningful. The natural relationship between women and nature is evident here through the natural love of life. And at the same time, there is nothing more beautiful than putting your hands in the earth, feeling the plants, and nurturing the seeds of revolution.”

So while seeds grow, bloom, and dry outside, inside: medicine is produced. The rooms are filled with the results of everyone’s work. Capsules are produced, oil is bottled, and creams and ointments are made. Almost everything here is made from the Centre’s own garden. In addition to production of medicine here, sick people also visit the center. They are treated in the next room.

The medicine produced is mainly used for internal ailments: for everything except the heart and eyes. Unlike in Europe, more than just the painful area is treated, because the body functions holistically and so too does the medicine that is given.

A holistic view of the body helps to strengthen and defend it against disease. The body is understood as best able to help itself: and that medicine should help to support it in doing so. Since everything comes from nature, the body can accept the medicine well, and does not see it as something foreign. In addition to administering medicine; the work of helping people to understand their own bodies is also understood as important work here. As well as providing medicine, the illness and the effects of the medicinal plant are discussed, massages are given, exercises are demonstrated, and nutrition is discussed, with patients.

As a result, naturopathy is recognized in society and people come throughout the day to be treated or simply to ask questions and discuss. Here, people are taught that nature is close to them, and their consciousness is changed. Navenda Jiyan literally means the center of life. This is because it is the place where life begins with nature – and where change for a new life also begins.

The 2nd Mesopotamia Water Forum (MWF), organized to protect water resources, defend the right to water, and ensure ecological justice, continued on its third day at the ÇandAmed Congress and Culture Center. During the event, proposals from two days of forum and workshop discussions were shared. Many international guests, ecology activists, representatives of civil society organizations, and political parties attended the forum.

On the third day and last day of the forum, participants presented their suggestions and measures to be taken in the future. Following the discussion of proposals, it was announced that the final declaration would be released ten days later, incorporating the collected views.

Throughout the three-day discussions, participants emphasized that water is not a scarce resource, but rather that the main issue lies in the unequal access to it. A proposal to recognize rivers as “living entities” received strong support. Participants stated that this approach represents not only a legal struggle but also the beginning of a broader social movement. Representatives from Iraq reported that 80 percent of the country’s water resources had diminished, leading to the displacement of millions. Participants from North and East Syria stated that water cuts constitute a violation of the right to life, and proposed the formation of a delegation to establish democratic pressure mechanisms concerning the Allouk Water Station. Representatives from Turkey drew attention to the impacts of dams, mining, and energy projects on water resources. The forum also highlighted the sacredness of water in Yazidi, Zoroastrian, and Nestorian beliefs.

The main proposals forming the framework of the final declaration were listed as follows:

• Develop new policies against mining activities in river basins.
• Draft international agreements to protect the right to water, ensuring that such agreements are implemented with the direct participation of local communities, and establish relevant commissions.
• Create common digital platforms that allow people to connect quickly.
• Develop shared policies against the pressure of industrial livestock farming on water resources.
• Collect accurate data on water among communities and establish joint research commissions.
• Form a delegation to build democratic pressure mechanisms regarding the Allouk Water Station in Rojava.
• Collect accurate data on water among communities and establish joint research commissions.

The forum’s slogan was “Water is life, water is peace.”

After the conclusion of the forum, participants from various regions visited historical and cultural sites in Amed, including Cemilpaşa Mansion, the Dengbêj House, Fiskaya, the Ten Arches Bridge, and Mount Kırklar.

The 2nd Mesopotamia Water Forum, organised by the Amed (Diyarbakir) Metropolitan Municipality, the Mesopotamia Water Forum and the Mesopotamia Ecology Movement, has begun. Over the three-day forum, discussions will address not only the water resources of Mesopotamia but also the water crisis and related policies in Iran, Iraq and Syria. The forum, which includes participants from the Middle East, Turkey and UNESCO, will also seek solutions to the policies of the capitalist system that has turned water into a tool of war.

Ecologist Beyza Üstün, one of the participants of the forum, drew attention to the deepening attacks on water resources and capital-driven policies particularly in the lands of Mesopotamia. Üstün said: “Water is liberated together with peace,” and added that water, once disconnected from its natural flow, has turned into a crisis and that a struggle must be waged against this.

Üstün said at the second Mesopotamia Water Forum that water policies in the region threaten both nature and societies and reacted to the transformation of water into an instrument of capital accumulation. She stated that the reason for bringing together the peoples of the Mesopotamian basin, ecology organisations, activists, politicians and researchers in this forum is to “defend water and life,” adding: “We are here as those who care about water policies and those who want to protect water.” She underlined that this process is not only an environmental struggle but also a political and social one.

The Mesopotamian basin is under a deep assault

According to Beyza Üstün, water policies in the Middle East are undergoing a profound transformation, particularly through Western Mesopotamia. The efforts of the capitalist system and nation-states to control water resources directly threaten life in the region.

Üstün said: “The capitalist system, backed by imperialism, imposes international decisions on nation-states. In this process, natural assets, ecosystems and fundamentally water, which is the source of all living beings, are being commodified.” She recalled that the decisions taken at the 1992 Dublin Conference removed water from being a human right and turned it into a commercial commodity.

Water has been cut off from its natural flow

Üstün stated that the water policies implemented in Turkey and neighbouring riparian countries have long been destroying nature and added: “Through dams, energy projects and investments by large corporations, water has been cut off from its natural flow; the common asset of peoples, living beings and entire ecosystems has been turned into part of capital accumulation.” She said the process is destroying not only water but also forests, agricultural lands and ecological balances: “When water becomes inaccessible, life also becomes inaccessible. Who has access to water? Only those with money and capital. State policies legitimise this.”

Water has become a war strategy

Beyza Üstün said that policies carried out through the control of water deepen regional conflicts, recalling the examples of Israel–Palestine and Rojava, and stated that water has now become a part of war strategies. Üstün said, “To seize water means to seize life, and this is a direct intervention in the lives of peoples,” and added that wars serve as instruments of capitalist and imperialist intervention.

We must struggle for all living beings

Üstün stated that in order to break this hegemony, it is necessary to resist capitalism, patriarchal mentality and capital-oriented interventions carried out under the pretext of security policies: “Today, as those who defend water, we are resisting this domination that invades every area of nature with mines, HEPPs, WPPs and SPPs, not only for our own lives but for all living systems. The purpose of this forum is to discuss ways to protect water and alternative forms of life against the system. We are not talking about controlling water but about controlling the system that interferes with water. We are discussing how we can sustain life without condemning it to the capitalist system,” she said, summarised the direction of the forum.

What we call the climate crisis is a water crisis

Beyza Üstün said that the crises experienced around the world are rooted in interventions in the water cycle.

Üstün said, “What we call the climate crisis is actually a water crisis. Because the water cycle has been disrupted, atmospheric balance has changed. Storms, droughts and floods are all the result of these interventions.”

Üstün stated that the conflicts created by wars and systems will now take shape around access to water: She said, “The real danger is the gap between those who can access water and those who cannot. No living being can survive in a world without water. For this reason, we are waging this struggle not only for people but for the continuation of life.”

Finally, Üstün underlined that the liberation of water is also the key to peace and said: “The liberation of water is peace. With peace, water is liberated and peoples liberate water. As subjects of this struggle, we come together here, we debate, and we seek our path together.”

Al-Hasakah — In the Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria, where women have faced war and crises for over fourteen years, their role is not limited to rebuilding life—it extends to protecting the environment. In the Jazira region, municipalities adopt a democratic environmental model that empowers women, based on the philosophy of Leader Abdullah Öcalan.

Under this approach, municipalities are not merely central governmental institutions, but independent spaces that pulse with the will of the people, women, and communities. Through this model, women reshape municipalities as centers for environmental and life protection, embodying the spirit of resistance and social and environmental justice.

Leader Öcalan emphasizes in his definition of democratic freedom the necessity of organizing municipalities through communes and councils. This model has been implemented in the municipalities of North and East Syria under women’s leadership, ensuring equal representation in decision-making. Municipalities do not merely provide technical services—they also set policies that promote the environment, society, and women’s freedom.

Berivan Omar, Co-Chair of the Union of Municipalities in Jazira, emphasized the importance of environmental protection, highlighting the crucial role local leaders must play in ensuring a healthy and sustainable environment for all. She drew attention to the deep historical connection between women and nature, considering women the foremost defenders of the environment. Amid capitalist policies that continue to destroy cities and nature, women lead municipal projects aimed at building harmonious, clean, and sustainable cities.

Women and the Environment: Local Leadership Towards Sustainable Development

Berivan Omar noted that the capitalist system has corrupted human life, while women strive to build a new balance between humans and nature in response to this system. “Throughout history, power has been linked to the domination of both nature and women; yet, women cannot be separated from nature. We see women in political spheres as the foremost defenders of the environment.”

She added that as local leaders, women work to achieve harmony between civic life, urban expansion, and nature, responding to the multiple crises left by capitalist life and major cities. “This approach is reflected in municipal efforts, particularly through the Women’s Office, which continuously seeks to enhance green spaces, increase cleaning efforts, and focus on the environment in general.”

“Women Are More Connected to Nature and Protective of It”

Berivan Omar pointed out that the co-chair system and women’s representation in municipal councils have given women an active role in decision-making. This change has strengthened women’s participation in environmental, agricultural, and sanitation issues since 2012, especially following the establishment of the Autonomous Administration.

She explained that women have provided significant support in developing these areas, and their efforts continue today. This system enables women to have a direct impact within municipal councils, where their presence in discussions is influential, especially when they hold a majority, making their opinions central to all parties involved.
Omar emphasized the importance of women’s role in decision-making, noting that their decisions often have a positive and effective impact, particularly when analyzed from a perspective that considers the future of women and children, making them more inclusive and sustainable.

She added that this approach differs from male-led decisions, which often focus only on the technical aspects of construction and urban planning. The co-chair system ensures the continuity of this balance, with women participating in over 50% of municipal work, enhancing their presence and ensuring broader protection of community interests.

“Women in Municipalities: A Powerful Voice in Environmental Decision-Making”

Berivan Omar stressed the importance of having a Women’s Council and a dedicated environmental platform within the Union of Municipalities. This organizational framework ensures that women’s projects reflect their visions and respond to community needs. “The Women’s Council within the Union of Municipalities was established, with offices organized to focus projects on building clean and beautiful cities and making effective environmental protection decisions.”

She noted that women’s participation in these platforms often stems from a deep belief in the importance of environmental protection and the necessity of coexistence among all living beings, enhancing the prospects of sustainable nature preservation.

Omar pointed out that municipalities play a pivotal role in serving the community. “Their establishment was one of the first steps in building the Autonomous Administration system, which forms the foundation of local governance.”

She highlighted the law issued in 2024, particularly Article Four, which grants expanded powers to local officials, enhancing their ability to provide better services. “This expansion requires municipalities, when proposing any project, to organize participatory meetings involving all relevant parties from municipalities, councils, committees, and organizations to ensure project implementation aligns with community needs.” She confirmed that the role of local leadership has significantly evolved, and community services have become more effective and organized thanks to this participatory decision-making model.

“Environmental Protection: A Collective Responsibility and a Necessity”

Berivan Omar emphasized that trust in local leadership is fundamental to successful municipal work, stressing the importance of community involvement in all municipal activities. “We cannot achieve effective results without the support and participation of residents in project implementation. Without this interaction, we cannot meet the city’s needs or work according to its requirements.”

She added that building trust between citizens and local officials is essential because the people lead the municipality, and municipal employees implement the decisions made by the community itself.

In conclusion, Berivan Omar underscored that environmental protection is not merely an option but a fundamental necessity to ensure human health and the development of civic life, affirming that environmental preservation should be at the heart of any developmental or urban project.

The Ilısu Dam has brought nothing but harm to farmers in the region. Before the dam, the Siirt pistachio was renowned for its unique flavor. But after the drought caused by the dam, the pistachios began to rot and turn black.

Across Kurdistan, dozens of hydroelectric power plant (HPP) projects are under construction or have already been built. These projects, present in many provinces, have forced millions to migrate, submerged villages under water, and wiped out farmland. In Siirt alone there are eight dams, and nearly every stream in the province has been targeted for new hydroelectric projects. The Ilısu Dam, which came into operation in 2020, caused mass displacement and devastation across three provinces and destroyed the historic town of Hasankeyf. For local farmers, it has meant nothing but loss. Once famous for its flavor, Siirt pistachios have been devastated by the drought, leaving growers unable to harvest crops and forcing many to migrate in search of work.

Locals driven into poverty

Mehmet Sıddık Evin, who has relied on pistachios for his livelihood for nearly 30 years, is among those affected. Speaking from his orchard, he explained how the dam has left farmers with heavy losses in recent years. He said drought and water shortages are causing the pistachios to turn black, and warned that the dam is driving the local population into poverty.

Pistachios burned, orchards dried out

“Before, it was very good,” Evin said, adding: “I’ve made my living from pistachios for 30 years. But after the Ilısu Dam, our pistachios no longer grow. Around 70% of the people here live off pistachios. Because of these dams and this water, they left us with nothing. No orchards, no means of survival. Our harvests used to be good, but now the pistachios either burn up or don’t grow at all. If they don’t find a solution, the only livelihood left for people will disappear. Before the dam, they ran a thousand advertisements saying agriculture would improve, that people would benefit. But the dams brought us nothing except poverty, hardship, and oppression. There’s water and dams everywhere, yet in our own land we are living like Karbala.”

Neither livelihood nor production left

Evin added that the water crisis in the village has reached critical levels: “There’s no water in the village. We can’t give water to our animals, and all our orchards have dried up. No livelihood remains, no orchards or fields. We only produce pistachios, and if that’s gone, we’ll be left unemployed. Seasonal workers here rely on these fields in the summer. If there are no pistachios, they too will be forced to migrate.”

The dam is forcing us to leave

“I don’t want to leave my land, my homeland,” Evin said, adding: “But this dam is forcing us to migrate. While the state and companies get richer, we have become poorer. If things go on like this, there will no longer be such a thing as the Siirt pistachio. We don’t know what to do or how to survive.”

In the city of Hesekê, the Seed Institute of North and East Syria has launched its first seed processing center using laser technology. The facility is considered the first of its kind in the country and is expected to significantly improve the quality and purity of agricultural seeds.

The seed processing center began operations in June and, according to its own figures, processes up to 60 tons of grain and legumes every day. In addition to wheat, lentils, chickpeas, and other varieties can also be cleaned and processed there.

Greater efficiency through smart agricultural technology

The new plant uses state-of-the-art technology: laser systems and electronic cameras are used to precisely remove unwanted components such as dust, stones, plastic residues, and foreign seeds from the raw material. In five cleaning steps, the grains are sorted, filtered, and classified according to size. The aim is to supply seeds that meet international quality standards.

“With this center, we are setting a qualitative milestone in seed processing,” said Hişam Reşo, head of the seed center. Around 20 specialists are employed at the facility, including technicians, machine operators, and cleaning staff.

Contribution to agricultural development in the region

According to Reşo, the center aims to ensure that farmers are supplied with high-quality seeds, thereby strengthening agricultural production in the region. The initiative is part of a long-term development plan that envisages the use of laser technology in all seed centers in the autonomous region of North and East Syria in the future.

The new infrastructure is particularly important for reconstruction and self-sufficiency in the region. The seed sector is considered a strategic component of local food security in northeastern Syria.

Ahin Hussein, head of the Laboratories Department at the Kobani Environment Board, told North Press that the facility will include four main sections dedicated to water, soil, air, and geological analyses.

“The water section will measure acidity and alkalinity (pH), conduct organic and inorganic assessments such as BOD and COD, and evaluate turbidity,” Hussein said.

She added that the soil section will focus on fertility, alkalinity, and salinity, as well as identifying essential elements for different soil types.

According to Hussein, the third section will analyze air quality, measuring gases such as carbon dioxide, ammonia, and methane.

The geological section, she noted, will determine groundwater depth using specialized equipment. The laboratory will also feature devices for measuring gas concentrations in sewage networks.

Regarding the geological section, Hussein pointed out it will determine groundwater depth using specialized geological equipment, and the laboratory will also house devices to measure gas concentrations in sewage networks.

The laboratory will be established in the “Martyr Rojenk” plant nursery, west of Kobani, and will be staffed by engineers specialized in environmental analysis. 

Hussein said the required equipment will arrive from China within a month. She added that the laboratory will also be accessible to university students specializing in agriculture and biology, offering them a space to conduct scientific research.

The Hajin Educational Complex, under the Education and Training Authority of the DAA in Deir Ezzor, has launched an environmental and developmental project in the “Al-Wasat” and “Girls’ Secondary” schools in Hajin city. The project includes installing solar energy systems and renovating classrooms.

The project involves setting up a solar energy system consisting of 16 solar panels in each school, supported by storage batteries and conversion devices, including a V48 device and tubular batteries, to generate approximately 40 amperes of clean energy. This ensures a stable and environmentally friendly electricity source.

Additionally, the project includes installing a water purification station in each school, with a production capacity of up to 100 liters per hour, to provide safe drinking water for students and educational staff.

The main work on the project is expected to be completed within this week, with plans to implement similar projects in other schools to benefit students at the start of the new academic semester. Concurrently, efforts are underway to rehabilitate several classrooms in the two schools to enhance the educational environment.

The project was carried out during the summer break to take advantage of the period, reduce school operational costs by relying on renewable energy, and support essential services like electricity and water. It also aims to raise students’ awareness of the importance of clean energy.

Representatives of the Educational Complex emphasized that this initiative is part of a comprehensive plan by the DAA to develop school infrastructure in the governorate. They noted that the project will contribute to improving the quality of education by providing a suitable learning environment.

On 19 July 2012, the Kurds found their own “Freedom Day” when the people of Kobane took control of their own destiny, repelling Assad’s Syrian forces and embarked on establishing their own self-government. On the following day, 20 July, the people in Afrin joined them in this endeavour, setting off a wave of successful resistance in the coming days and months across the region that emerged as Rojava. The heroic resistance of these embattled Kurdish men and women immediately inspired solidarity from onlookers around the world and peoples of all nations rallied to the defence of Kobane.

What has become known as the Rojava Revolution drew its direct inspiration from the leadership and writings of Abdullah Öcalan; it was a practical implementation of his core political ideas and unique contribution to the politics of Kurdistan and the broader Middle East region, with global implications and valuable lessons for the entire peoples of the world.”

Women were in the lead and continue to play a crucial role in the new model of society implemented. All the different nations and beliefs in Rojava and Northern Syria joined the 19 July Revolution with their own features and identities.

They started to work together to build a new democratic system on the road to democratization. In the developed democratic system, democratic solutions to issues related to women as the oppressed gender were elaborated, and a political and social system started to take shape as an alternative to the global capital and capitalist system.

The so-called Arab Spring began in Tunisia in 2010 and spread to other Arab and Northern African countries. It also reached Syria. As the popular movement took its first steps in Syria, the Baath regime responded with even stricter oppressive methods in place since 1963 to protect its power.

With the beginning of the Syrian Revolution on 15 March 2011, the peoples of Rojava and northern Syria called for freedom, democracy and equality, organising many demonstrations. Peoples living in northern Syria also demanded an end of the policy of denial imposed by the Baath regime.

Rojava and Northern Syrian women with their various features began to take the lead in the struggle that developed. The essence of the work carried out in the struggle in Northern Syria and Rojava was a struggle for democracy of the peoples, but it was women who added their particular flavour to this.

Öcalan’s ideas formed the basis of the organization

In Rojava and Northern Syria women had the lead of the demonstrations and there is no doubt that the ideological and practical perspective of the struggle was taken from the philosophy of the PKK (Kurdistan Worker’s Party) leader Abdullah Öcalan. They were against the regional and international conspiracy.

In Rojava and Northern Syria, women set up their own organization in 2005 and called it Yekitiya Star [later this name was changed to Kongra Star]. Yekitiya Star, the first step in the struggle for women’s liberation, gradually reached a new level of organization in political, military, social, diplomatic and cultural fields with the beginning of the revolution.

Although in the region it was above all Kurdish women who were involved in the freedom struggle and organization, soon other women from the whole region were incorporated and joined both the struggle and the organisation. In this way, the women’s organization that started as Yekitiya Star soon widened to include various ethnic and religious structures and went on to cover various fields such as political, military and social.

Women strengthened their solidarity in the Syrian revolution

Following the slogan of strengthening the solidarity of women in the Syrian revolution, Yekitiya Star founded the Syrian Women’s Initiative that carried out many different works.

The preparatory meeting of the Syrian Women’s Initiative under the leadership of Yekitiya Star was organized in the Cizire region with the slogan “Whatever their nation, belief and society, the women of Cizire are one”. The Syrian Women’s Initiative foundation conference was held in Qamishlo on 28 March and the first office was opened in the same Qamishlo on 17 November.

Training programs were organized for women in different parts of Rojava and Northern Syria. In the last period, trainings were held in the new liberated areas. In Afrin, Kobane and Cizire, Mala Jin (Women’s House) were opened. The understanding was that women should be able to solve their problems, to implement social justice principles, to provide social development against reactionary minds, to participate in all spheres of society for an ecological, democratic and free society.

On 21 January 2014, the Democratic Autonomous Administration and the Women’s Council were established. This enhanced the opportunities and projects for women to be carried out in the fields of administration, diplomacy and economy.

From Zehra Penaber to Raqqa: Liberation Operations

Kobane city has witnessed many historical and heroic epics. Women’s Defense Units (YPJ) in this city have resisted the patriarchal system in the name of all women and received support from women all over the world. After ISIS attacked Kobane on 15 September 2014, women got actively involved in defending the city against the mercenaries that threatened the world and imposed slavery on women. Women fighters took their place in the front lines throughout the resistance, and carried out many actions.

Arin Mirkan became a symbol of the fight with the action she carried out on 5 October 2014. Zehra Penaber, Hebun Derik and Evindar, are among the legendary commanders whose names will go down in history. They showed the whole world that women can defend themselves and defeat the ISIS mercenaries.

Avesta and Barin, symbols of Afrin resistance

Women have gained historical achievements against the invading Turkish army and its mercenary allies through the legendary resistance carried out in the Afrin mountains.

Like Arin Mirkan, Avesta Xabur has become a legendary symbol in the struggle for liberty of all women of the world thanks to her resistance in Afrin.

Barin Kobane is another woman whose name has been written in the history of women’s resistance. Barin Kobane, like Arin and Avesta, have opened the way to many more Barins, Arins, and Avestas who are ready to fight against ISIS and against fascism in the Resistance of the Age.

Women striving to preserve the social structure, make Mount Kizwan (Mount Abdulaziz), located in the Jazira Canton of North and East Syria, and its surroundings green. This year, what the most affected women farmers in the region is the low rainfall.

Water shortage in Wasta

One of the villages suffering from water shortage in the region is Wasta, a village located on the foothills of Mount Kizwan, 80 kilometers southwest of Til Temir, a town in northeastern Syria. The village suffers from a water shortage due to the lack of a water network providing drinking water to the village. The villagers fetch water from a water source located 40 km away from the village. The water shortage also affects agriculture in the village.

Symbol of resistance: Kînya tree

Despite all the challenges, the women have managed to make their village green. In the village, a tree called “Kînya” by villagers attracts notice. The tree planted in October 2019, one year before the Turkish state’s attacks on Serêkaniyê (Ras al-Ayn), is now seven years old. The tree was previously watered by water provided from the Alouk water station; however, the women in the village have used salty water to grow the tree since the Turkish state and Turkish-backed armed groups occupied the station and stopped the Alouk water station from pumping water. The tree stands firm in the village despite the salty water, becoming a symbol of resistance.

Take a break in the shade of the tree…

I planted the tree in 2019 to take a break in its shade, Meha El-Hesen told us. “We cannot plant more trees due to the lack of opportunity. We dug a well 10 years ago and we use the water of the well to water the tree. However, the water of the well is salty. We earn a living by raising sheep and cultivating corn. I planted it and now it is seven years old. I planted it to take a break with other women in its shade. Last year, I planted four more trees.”

Sediya Cabir also earns a living by raising sheep. She also suffers from the water shortage in the village. “You cannot see any green space in the village because of the low rainfall and the lack of irrigation. We drive our tractor for 40 km to fetch water from a water source in the village of Xera.”

Trees have a special importance for the villagers, Sediya Cabir told us. “Trees should be protected. I have planted four trees in the village until now; however, sheep ate their leaves. Walls should be built around the trees to protect them. We also suffer from power outages. We use solar panels but they do not provide sufficient power.”

In the second part of this interview, former co-spokesperson of the Mesopotamian Ecology Movement and ecology activist Güner Yanlıç spoke to ANF about  environmental destruction in Kurdistan, and whether the landscape preferences of local governments are ecologically sound.

The first part of the interview can be read here

Many people talk about adopting cats and stray animals. That’s of course important, but it also raises a problem: is there a kind of discrimination at play? On the one hand, people adopt street animals, while on the other hand, forests are being burned. If we focus specifically on Kurdistan, we see forest fires every year. But it’s not just trees burning, entire ecosystems, entire living communities are being destroyed, and there’s no outcry. How do you interpret this?

Particularly in Northern Kurdistan, and actually all the way from the north to the south, down to the Persian Gulf, there is an endemic species called the Euphrates softshell turtle. This species exists only in the Tigris and Euphrates rivers. Despite the threat of extinction, no protection or conservation efforts are being made. Because the system can still exploit those areas, no action is taken even when extinction is a risk.

Recently, there’s been a boom in owning cats and dogs, supported by a large pet industry. There are pet shops that sell them, stores that sell their food, and clinics that provide healthcare. An industrial market has developed around them, so cats and dogs are protected.

But if we turn back to, say, the wild goats of Dersim, an endemic species, their habitats are regularly taken away each year due to conflict, war, and so-called “security” operations. Despite facing extinction, there’s no concern or action for these animals.

So we don’t accept or believe in the sincerity of a mindset that claims to care about polar bears while ignoring all others. If you only protect cats, dogs, and polar bears and ignore the millions of other species, then you’re practicing a particularly extreme form of speciesism.

If you build little houses in parks for cats and dogs, but remain silent while thousands of animals burn alive in Şırnak forest fires, and instead raise a fuss when cat or dog shelters aren’t cleaned or refilled, you are participating in a huge deception. That’s not right. That is precisely speciesism.

From the perspective of social ecology, this is where we stand. If you make such distinctions, if the system supports cats, dogs, or other species, and you embrace only them, then you’re safe. You won’t be seen as an opponent. But if you fight for the lives of animals lost in forest fires in Şırnak or Dersim, then especially in Turkey, the state criminalizes you and obstructs your work.

We established an Ecology Union covering all of Turkey six years ago. Through the Ecology Union, we explained that there is no difference between a tree burned in Şırnak and one burned in the Kaz Mountains. And we did a good job of explaining this. We built solidarity from us to the Kaz Mountains, and from there to Şırnak, Cudi, and Dersim. We managed to clearly convey, at least to the environmental and ecological movements, that issues like the criminalization of trees in Şırnak or the terrorization of trees in Dersim due to conflict are political tactics.

Another topic I’d like to ask about is the alignment between local governments and social ecology, especially when they’re engaged in projects like landscaping or road construction. Let’s take sand quarries as an example. There are many sand quarries being built in Kurdistan. First, I’d like to hear your thoughts on that.

Amed has a history of at least 7,000 years. Its streets, avenues, and structures are all made from local and natural materials and have stood for thousands of years.

Now look at the Zerzevan Castle. It was built 2,000 years ago, using stones taken from a nearby quarry. So, when we have such local materials and resources, if you claim to oppose the deaths caused by these so-called death quarries, where 3 to 5 people die every day, and claim to be against sandpits that destroy wetlands and health areas, and if you say flora and fauna are disappearing, and when we add the labor and environmental exploitation on top of the dust caused by cement factories… then what’s the point of paving roads or parks with interlocking paving stones?

That’s a complete contradiction. You say you practice ecological municipalism and oppose sand quarries, yet, on the other hand, you use paving stones produced by dozens of those same quarries, even though they don’t match the local texture of the city.

For years, we’ve worked with local governments. As the ecology movement and Ecology Union, we’ve been explaining for years what ecological municipalism means. We continue to explain. In every election cycle, we collaborate with strategic committees on this issue.

Yet somehow, before elections, all candidates seem to adopt an ecological consciousness. But once they come into local power, which, in the eyes of the state, is still a form of governance, there’s no actual ecological progress. Everything continues as before. There are no additions or subtractions related to ecology. Even if they do a few token things, it’s superficial and goes nowhere.

We say we’re against fossil fuels. We argue for a lifestyle not centered around cars. We advocate using bicycles. But if everywhere is being paved with asphalt and interlocking stones are being laid, there’s no way to justify that from an ecological perspective. You can’t even justify it by saying it’s a public institution.

It might be an ugly example, but Rome built roads still in use today, 2,000 years ago. After all this time, money, resources, and labor, if you’re still laying paving stones in villages, either you lack ecological awareness or you’re just throwing water into a mill with a bucket.

If a municipality has good intentions and is working on this, I don’t know, because they haven’t communicated it. But from what we see in the media, for instance, pine trees native to Bursa [very far away, in western Turkey] were recently planted in Şırnak.

Yes, on the one hand, forests are being burned and nature destroyed. This is a long-standing and deliberate policy by the state. On the other hand, trees are  planted by local governments, but they are usually pine trees. Or in landscaping projects, instead of local flowers native to Kurdistan, imported species are used. What are your thoughts on that?

For years, after forest fires, we collected and distributed acorns from native oak trees in the region to the burned areas. Not once. We did this at least 3–4 times. After every fire, as a large-scale effort, we planted oak seeds in Dersim, Şırnak, Wan, Amed, mass plantings.

What’s wrong with planting? What we can’t explain is the military or state mindset of bringing in invasive or foreign pine species to replant. If someone can justify that, let them. Either they’re incapable or they simply say “we didn’t know.” These local governments have been under our administration for over 10 years.

Of course, I don’t want to be unfair, considering the appointed trustees, but we’ve been actively campaigning, writing, informing, organizing meetings, and continuing awareness efforts in this field. The state appoints trustees, and they use landscaping projects to enrich their allies by planting flora completely incompatible with Kurdistan’s vegetation in cities and towns like Amed and Wan.

But even democratic local governments, despite all our education efforts, choose to plant pines instead of oaks without considering the region’s ecosystem. This is incomprehensible. Either no one listened to us, or they verbally accepted the ecological paradigm but did not prioritize it in practice.

There’s no ecological approach! I don’t want to speculate too much about intentions, but if you still “don’t know,” we’ve been explaining this for 10 years. As the Mesopotamia Ecology Movement and Ecology Union, we’ve probably sat down and explained this to at least 5 out of 100 municipalities. We’ve also explained it to many municipalities in Turkey. When other municipalities don’t follow through, we say, “Well, that’s a system municipality.” But when a municipality you’ve worked with for years behaves like a system municipality, it’s really difficult to understand. At least for me, it makes no sense.

Let me ask one last question. Recently, in addition to hydroelectric plants (HES), solar power plants (GES) are being built in Kurdistan. For example, there’s a GES project in Pasur, and there’s resistance against it. What do you think about these? How ecologically sound are they?

Actually, we are just as opposed to GES projects as we are to dams. If we oppose dams and sandpits but still lay interlocking paving stones, that’s not right. Similarly, if we oppose dams, we must also oppose GES projects. The reason we oppose solar plants is that their commercial lifespan is only 20 years. They contain dozens of toxic chemicals harmful to both human and non-human life. And after 20 years, in capitalist terms, they become “solid waste.” Even the costs of disposal or recycling after 20 years aren’t covered by their benefits.

But the state is using these projects as a way to reach areas it can’t directly access—allowing capital, especially energy capital, to take over mountains, hills, rivers, land, and village pastures. If energy is not produced communally, and if there’s exploitation of nature, people, women, and children, then it cannot be considered “green.”

In Kurdistan, especially in places where the state couldn’t previously enter, there’s been a rapid influx of capital, particularly through mining operations. More recently, through solar power plants, lands, plots, and pastures are being seized. And in the long run, this is a policy aimed at forcing local people to migrate from their lands.”

Til Temir – Mount Kizwan (Mount Abdulaziz), located in the Jazira Canton of North and East Syria, is known for its tree diversity and natural beauty; however, armed groups such as Al-Nusra Front and ISIS, cut down almost all trees in the mountain when they controlled the area.

90% of trees on Mount Kizwan were cut down between 2011 and 2015, according to the Ecology Committee of the People’s Municipality. When ISIS took control of the area, ISIS members and the local residents cut down trees to meet their need for firewood.

Fines against those who cut down trees

According to the Ecology Committee of Mount Kizwan, the cutting down of trees in the mountain has increased significantly for two years. Fines for cutting down trees without a permit in North and East Syria range from 500 to one million Syrian pounds, according to the Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria’s Penal Code. Fines for cutting down trees to build a house range from two to three million Syrian pounds [note: currency conversion is currently around $100 US to 1 million Syrian pounds].

‘We only cut down dried trees’

The Ecology Committee of Mount Kizwan carries out awareness-raising activities in villages close to the mountain in order to protect nature. “We need permission to cut down dried trees,” said Meha İd El-Hilü, who lives in a village close to the mountain.

“Since we need firewood to cook and get warm in winter, we get permission to cut down dried trees. We only cut down dried trees because we do not want to destroy nature.”

People living in the villages on the foothills of Mount Kizwan plant trees in order to reforest Mount Kizwan. “Trees produce oxygen and help prevent floods. We suffer from the water shortage because some villages do not have water wells or a water system. Planting olive trees and roses requires a lot of water. Water is as important as trees because we need water for our trees.”

Call for planting trees

Meha İd El-Hilü called on all villagers in the area to plant trees to protect nature. “Trees are one of the most important things in our life. Every family must plant two or three trees because we must work together to reforest the mount. We need projects that aim to increase green areas against deforestation.”

Jinwar was officially opened on 25th November 2018, but the process of its establishment was a longer journey. The idea of building a women’s village was inspired by proposals of Abdullah Öcalan and discussed for a long time by the Kurdish Women’s Movement. With the 2012 Rojava Revolution, including the establishment of the self-administration and the withdrawal of the Baath regime from most areas these ideas became more realizable. Concrete plans started in 2016 by an initiative of different women organizations – Kongra Star, the Free Women’s Foundation, the Jineolojî Academy and the Martyr Families Council. The land, which had once been confiscated by the state, was initially cultivated after the revolution by an agricultural cooperative of Aboriya Jin (women’s economy committee) and then donated to the project.

In 2017 the construction of the village started. The houses of the village were built in a traditional way by forming bricks out of earth, water and straw. Some of the buildings were decorated with murals showing the spirit and the message of the women’s village. For example the image of Şahmaran as the bearer of an ancient knowledge symbolizes women’s struggle, strength of transformation and wisdom. The building process of this village connects to a long history of women’s struggle in Kurdistan, to the efforts and sacrifices of many women.

“Women are strongly connected with society – they are the ones organizing the basis of life, inventing methods and tools to solve problems in society and creating bonds of solidarity and mutual support. We are getting connected to this role again, organizing our life together, supporting each other and sharing our knowledge with each other.” says Sirîn, a woman currently living in the village. She came as a language teacher to the village. Previously she lived in Qamishlo where she was a school teacher, first under the rule of the Baath regime and then as part of establishing the new education system in the Kurdish mother-language in the system self-administration. Now she is teaching reading and writing, as well as other subjects, to the mothers and children in Jinwar in their own mother-tongues, both Arabic and Kurdish.

The life in Jinwar is based on communal values and principles such as ecology, democratic self-organization, women’s economy, women’s health, education and the building up of a common future. The women share their knowledge about gardening and ecological ways of growing fruits and vegetables. At the same time, their aim is to build a self-sustainable life that offers independence on an economic level. The women of Jinwar are building up a communal economy by working hand in hand with other cooperatives in the region. Furthermore, they run a bakery, a small village store and dry vegetables for the winter which are also sold. All decisions concerning the daily life, activities, new ideas and the village economy are discussed and made in the village council assemblies. The children and the youth have their own assemblies and spokespersons in order to participate in democratic decision making processes.

Connected to the village, is also the health center ŞifaJin (Healing of Women). The natural healing and health center opened in 2020 and has rooms for treatments, consultations, educational work, and the production of natural remedies. The project also includes a garden where medicinal herbs are cultivated. ŞifaJin’s ambulance ensures mobility in urgent cases and the cooperation with women from surrounding villages to collect and share traditional natural healing knowledge in connection with modern knowledge and treatment methods.

“The life in Jinwar is an example for women living and organizing together and finding their strength together. It is a place that shines around the world. Being here and talking to the women here, I really feel freer and hopeful. It is clear, we need more places all around the world like this village. It is our task as internationalists to build up these places everywhere and establish a network of connection between them”, concludes Julia after her visit at Jinwar.

More information and impressions about Jinwar, you can find here or here.

Ecologists, farmers, students, journalists, political party representatives, and civil society organizations gathered in Amed (tr:Diyarbakır) to announce the establishment of the Amed Ecology Council.

The meeting, held at the Tahir Elçi Conference Hall of the Diyarbakır Bar Association, was attended by numerous organizations and individuals engaged in environmental struggles. A banner reading “Bê jiyana ekojîk aşitî pêk nayê” (There can be no peace without an ecological life) was hung in the meeting hall.

At the opening of the meeting, Necdet Sezgin, a member of the Amed Ecology Association, explained the reasons for establishing the council, saying, “In this period of ecological destruction, it is urgent to create a common ground for struggle.”

Following a moment of silence and the election of the presiding council, ecologist Yıldırım Arslan spoke about the council’s goals and operating principles and said, “We are experiencing a process that will lead to a renaissance in the Middle East. It is no longer enough to engage in theoretical efforts; it is time to bring these efforts together with society.”

In the charter read by Semra Dağdelen, an activist with the Ecology Association, the fundamental philosophy of the Council was defined with the emphasis that “ecological consciousness is fundamental ideological consciousness.” The text included comprehensive analyses of the relationship between humans and nature, socially structured communities led by women, a vision of a classless society, and symbiotic living with nature.

According to the charter, the ecological and social destruction caused by the hierarchical and oppressive civilization system is not limited to visible environmental crises; the relationship between society and nature has turned into an abyss. The Amed Ecology Council advocates the construction of democratic, ecological, and women’s libertarian social structures to overcome this crisis.

The text stated that nature has been severely damaged in the Mesopotamian region due to various factors, such as dams and hydroelectric power plants built on the Tigris and Euphrates River basins, uncontrolled mining, oil and geothermal energy activities, chemical-dependent agriculture, and the loss of biological diversity. It emphasized that all this destruction has also led to a drift away from the cultural and moral values of the people.

The charter stated that environmental policies alone will not be sufficient to achieve a new model of society known as the “Third Nature”; radical changes in mindset and society are also necessary. Within the framework of the social ecology paradigm, a revolutionary policy against hierarchy and domination is advocated, and the solution must begin in local communities and grow by uniting with universal freedom movements, it added.

The text stated that an ecological society can only be built on the basis of direct democracy and libertarian local governance, and announced that the Amed Ecology Council has taken the first step toward this goal. With the emphasis that “the commune is a school where the individual is liberated,” the goal of transforming Amed into an ecological and democratic city was declared.

At the end of the meeting, a film screening on the ecological struggle was held. Following the closed session, the final declaration of the Amed Ecology Council will be shared with the public.

A newly published report has exposed the devastating environmental toll of oil pollution in North and East Syria, known as Rojava, where communities near the Gir Zero oil fields are grappling with toxic air, rising cancer cases, and barren farmland. Written by journalist Philippe Pernot and released on Reporterre on 12 May, the investigation highlights how years of war, Turkish airstrikes, and neglected infrastructure have turned vital oil reserves into a source of ecological and public health disaster. The crisis now threatens both lives and the fragile future of the region’s post-conflict recovery.

“The air is totally unbreathable here. We have about 50 cases of cancer reported per 500 inhabitants. And we all have a tumour in us that just waits to reveal itself,” Ali Thelaj, a local nurse told Reporterre. Many families stated that relatives had suffered terminal diseases due to pollutants, while others showed skin ailments, among other symptoms.

Flowing from the Gir Zero fields is what’s known locally as the “river of death”, Pernot said. It is full of wastewater and petroleum, which is a direct result of Turkish bombardments of oil refineries and conflict-hampered regional development.

The Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) and the Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria (AANES) have controlled most of Syria’s northeast oil field since 2017, after the defeat of the Islamic State (ISIS). Assad’s regime purchased oil from northern Syria even when those areas were not under regime control, trading in oil out of mutual necessity.

Much of the region’s economy relies heavily on oil reserves—since little else can be cultivated in the arid landscape. It was a bitter exchange between enemies: those living in Rojava had few other resources to sustain economic activity, and the Assad regime was fully aware of this, Pernod explained.

During the civil war, Assad and various militant groups financed their operations through the oil fields and refineries in the region. Safe and environmentally sound extraction practices were entirely neglected, the report noted, and the refineries became frequent targets of airstrikes by opposing forces. After the Kurdish-led forces recaptured the area, many of the refineries were deemed toxic and shut down.

Furthermore, the outdated infrastructure poses a major challenge and hinders the ecological goals of the Rojava Revolution, the region’s pioneering social movement emerging during the onset of the Syrian civil war in 2011. Various environmental initiatives have attempted to resolve the pollution issues and the extreme aridity of the land, but remain limited. While ongoing sanctions on Syria continue to restrict the region’s economic activity, crude oil remains an essential resource—still refined using these ageing machines and factories, despite the associated risks.

Meanwhile, Turkish forces have systematically bombed the refineries and power plants in Rojava, on one occasion early last year causing nearly one billion dollars of damage in a single attack, Pernod reported according to the power plant’s administration. The attack led to a major power blackout and widespread humanitarian crisis.

Mohammed Ahme, co-director of the environmental council in Qamishlo told Reporterre:

 “Turkey deliberately targeted civilian infrastructure in north-eastern Syria with more than a thousand bombings. They targeted water treatment plants, dams, power plants and even bakeries and hospitals. These attacks generate enormous pollution (up to 200 kilometres around) and a cut in services affecting the lives of the region’s inhabitants.”

A catastrophe at the Oudah oil refinery was a particularly grim example of Turkish sabotage. Director Mohammad Sino recalled that the facility was bombed up to six times a day in December 2023. Journalists from Reporterre, who interviewed him, visited the site – destroyed by a missile on 15 January 2024 – and found it in ruins. When it was destroyed, approximately 35,000 barrels of oil spilled into the surrounding fields.

Farmers say that almost nothing grows there anymore. Nevertheless, Kongra Star, an AANES women’s organisation, managed to construct a greenhouse in the area after the spill and remain hopeful that the land can one day be fertile again. However, such a transformation will require far more than local initiatives alone.

For farmers like Ahmed Al-Hilal, the wait to irrigate crops has become a distressingly long ordeal. Al-Hilal, who relies on irrigation canals fed by the Euphrates Dam, says he often waits for days—sometimes up to ten—to water his wheat fields.

“Ten days ago, the water levels were still tolerable,” he told North Press. “The weather was cooler and more humid, which helped mitigate some of the effects. But now, as summer begins, the heat and dryness are compounding the impact of the water shortage. The crops are suffering badly.”

Al-Hilal farms in the Tenth Line area east of Hattin Farm, located north of Raqqa city. According to him, the area depends heavily on scheduled water rotations, but when it’s time for irrigation, the water levels are too low to adequately nourish the crops. This inconsistency threatens to destroy the entire growing season for local farmers.

Water Crisis Rooted in Policy and Climate

Since February 2020, Turkey has significantly reduced the flow of water into Syria via the Euphrates River, contrary to international water-sharing agreements. This long-term policy, coupled with recurrent drought and heatwaves across the region, has led to severe declines in river levels, hampering the function of irrigation systems that local agriculture depends on.

Mohammad Ibrahim, another farmer from the Kasrat region south of Raqqa, emphasized that the water scarcity has intensified their struggles amid the ongoing drought. “The irrigation isn’t properly organized,” he explained. “There are frequent issues with pump stations, and the water is not being distributed fairly.”

He recounts frequent disputes erupting between farmers over water allocation. “Sometimes one farmer uses more than his share, or delays the release of water, which sparks arguments. In one instance, my cousin couldn’t irrigate his land because another farmer diverted the water at the last moment. A fight broke out.”

Systemic Failures and Infrastructure Needs

The problem, farmers say, is not just the water itself, but also poor management of what limited resources remain. According to Ibrahim, irrigation supervisors often report that only one or two pumps are operational at a time, severely restricting water output and leading to frequent scheduling conflicts.

North Press obtained figures from the Raqqa Civil Council’s Irrigation Office, revealing that Raqqa hosts 25 pumping stations comprising 102 pumping units. Of these, 9 are currently non-functional due to damage or technical failures. Repairing these units requires financial resources beyond the capabilities of the local administration and calls for immediate support from international aid organizations.

Raqqa has approximately 96,000 hectares of irrigated agricultural land, of which 43,000 hectares rely directly on these pumping stations. The Balikh Canal, one of the primary irrigation conduits connected to the Tel Al-Saman Station, is 155 km long and irrigates a substantial portion of this land. Other key canals include:

• Lower Al-Salhabiyah Canal: 60 km long, irrigating 20,000 hectares
• Upper Al-Salhabiyah Canal: 25 km long, serving 3,000 hectares
• Bir Al-Hashm Canal: 20 km long, supporting 10,000 hectares

Most of these canals are in urgent need of maintenance, and delays in repairs are worsening the already fragile agricultural ecosystem.

Local Officials Raise Alarms

Sheikh Nabi Khalil, head of operations at Raqqa’s Irrigation Office, attributes the root cause of the crisis to the dramatic drop in the Euphrates Dam’s reservoir levels, which he links directly to Turkey’s restriction of water flow.

“We are currently drafting plans to reduce water waste,” Khalil told North Press. “We urge farmers to be mindful of how they irrigate their crops and to avoid water-intensive farming of crops like sesame, yellow corn, and watermelon seeds.”

He directed a strong appeal to the United Nations and international organizations, warning that continued water blockage by Turkey could lead to a full-scale food crisis in a region where agriculture is the main source of income and sustenance for thousands of families.

Regional and Political Dimensions

In late April 2025, the Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria (AANES) issued a dire warning that the Tabqa Dam could be rendered inoperative within a month if the drought and water shortage persist. The Tishrin Dam, another major hydropower and irrigation facility, had already gone offline in recent months due to ongoing conflict and operational damage.

AANES’s statement also criticized Turkey’s breach of international water agreements, noting that current inflows into Syria have dropped to just 250 cubic meters per second, barely half of the amount stipulated under previous bilateral accords with Iraq and Syria.

The administration emphasized that prolonged drought, combined with increased evaporation from shrinking reservoirs, has brought the Euphrates Lake down to a dangerous level of 298 meters above sea level—six meters below its optimal elevation of 304 meters.

What Lies Ahead

Without immediate and coordinated intervention, both domestically and internationally, the water crisis in Raqqa will likely escalate into a broader humanitarian emergency. Reduced crop yields could lead to soaring food prices, deepening economic hardship, and even population displacement if farming becomes untenable.

Local officials are calling on the Syrian government to engage directly with Turkish authorities to ensure compliance with previously signed water-sharing protocols. Meanwhile, farmers on the ground are left to contend with vanishing resources, inadequate infrastructure, and the growing risk of agricultural collapse.

Unless urgent steps are taken, Raqqa and its surrounding areas may soon face the grim reality of agricultural famine, underscoring the critical link between water security, food sovereignty, and regional stability.

The water crisis, becoming increasingly severe in North and East Syria, is severely affecting the people living in many villages in the town of Til Berak in the Cizire Canton. Insufficient rainfall and the drying up of the Ceqceq Stream have led to the depletion of both drinking water and agricultural irrigation sources. The people of the region are calling for urgent measures to be taken in response to the drought.

The village of Batı Simêhan, which is part of Til Berak, and the surrounding villages have been using underground water sources fed by the Ceqceq Stream for years. Thanks to the rains during the winter and spring months, these sources remained usable for extended periods. However, this year’s near-absence of rainfall caused the stream to dry up completely. Surface wells ceased to yield water, and underground water levels dropped significantly.

Speaking to ANHA, Bessam El-Abdullah from Simêhan village emphasized that drought directly affected daily life. “We experienced severe drought this year due to very low rainfall and the effects of climate change. We are struggling most with finding drinking water and irrigating our agricultural lands,” he said.

El-Abdullah noted that the complete drying up of the Ceqceq Stream has also dried up wells and significantly lowered groundwater levels. He remarked that this situation is destroying vegetation and accelerating desertification in agricultural areas.

Highlighting the villagers’ expectation of urgent solutions, El-Abdullah appealed to the relevant authorities and made the following suggestion: “Either a water line should be laid from the Til Azan Station, which is only two kilometers away, to the villages, or drinking water should be provided by tankers. Both solutions are feasible and can meet the needs of the people.”

The situation in Til Berak and the surrounding area coincides with the deepening water crisis across northern and eastern Syria. The crisis is caused not only by the effects of climate change, but also by the Turkish state’s water policies on the Euphrates River. Turkey’s restriction of water flowing into the region is exacerbating the humanitarian and environmental crisis in northern and eastern Syria.

Experts warn that if comprehensive and sustainable solutions are not implemented to address the water crisis in the region, both agricultural production and living conditions will deteriorate further.

The co-spokespersons of the DEM Party Ecology, Agriculture and Animal Rights Commission, Melis Tantan and İbrahim Akın, stated in a written declaration: “We are living in an era where the cycle of nature is disrupted by capitalist interventions. We witness that the crisis created by capitalism is deepening the ecological crisis, that new opportunities are being created from these crises for the benefit of capital and states, while peoples, nature, and all living and non-living entities struggle for their very existence in these crises.”

The statement continued: “In a period where capital attempts to legitimize the right to pollute under the name of ‘emissions trading’ through legal regulations, where security policies result in ecological destruction alongside cultural and social destruction, and where those who pollute and destroy nature try to present themselves as ‘environmentalists,’ we will continue to pursue and defend the truth for nature.

This truth lies in defending all our living spaces and the rights of the wild, in establishing a way of life that protects all living and non-living beings while saying ‘for the wolf, the bird, and the table,’ and in sustaining the cycle of nature. It is possible to implement policies where the growth-focused rhetoric benefiting only domestic, foreign, and international capital groups through massive mining and energy investments is abandoned; where nature is not seen as a commodity or investment tool; where fossil fuel usage is ended without victimizing workers; and where plant-based and agricultural production is increased with methods that also protect farmers and their environments. It is possible to move away from rent-driven urbanization policies based on dispossession, impoverishment, and environmental destruction, toward self-sufficient, solidarity-based economies with no overconsumption and an urbanization that is nature-friendly, respects the rights of all species, and meets all human needs without discrimination.

On this year’s World Environment Day, themed ‘plastic pollution,’ we emphasize again that, like all other consequences of environmental destruction, the primary culprit of plastic pollution is capitalism, which treats nature as a commodity. We reiterate our call to halt plastic production to reduce the plastics released into nature and to oppose every capital-driven move that exploits crises, including the expansion of microplastic contamination under the guise of recycling.

On the occasion of World Environment Day, we remind that the Peace and Democratic Society process is inseparable from the struggle to protect nature. In this process, we will strengthen our struggle together with all peoples for a society in harmony with nature, where the soil is fertile, water flows freely, air is clean, and wildlife and ecological diversity can exist without interference.”

A service campaign launched by the Hasakeh City Council in coordination with the People’s Municipality and neighborhood communes in early April aims to improve public services and raise environmental awareness. Today, it reached the Al-Aziziyah neighborhood.

The cleaning campaign included public squares and main streets in the neighborhood, with the participation of committees from the People’s Municipality, members of the neighborhood communes, and a number of local volunteers who helped collect waste and clean sidewalks and public spaces.

Awareness leaflets were also distributed during the campaign, highlighting the importance of public cleanliness and the role of citizens in protecting the environment. The leaflets also provided guidance on how to sort waste and handle it in a healthy and proper way.

The campaign will continue in the coming period to cover all neighborhoods of the city, after previous phases were carried out in the neighborhoods of Al-Kalaseh, Al-Askari, Khashman, Al-Nashwa, Al-Mushayrifah, and Tal Hajar.

Til Temir – Farmers begin to harvest barley when it is gold in color. Barely is a strategic crop and one of the cornerstones of global food security. Barely can grow under different climatic conditions in many countries, playing an important economic role.

The sickle, one of the most ancient of harvesting tools, consists of a metal blade, usually curved, attached to a short wooden handle. It is still used all around the world because of its simple design and low cost.

In the village of Fiwêda, located on the foothills of Mount Kizwanan (Mount Abdulaziz), people still use the sickle as a harvesting tool.

‘Insufficient rainfall negatively impact crop growth and yields’

Henan Ebdullah, a resident of the village, plants barley every year with her daughters and grandchildren. “Insufficient rainfall negatively impacts crop growth and yields,” she told us while harvesting barley in her agricultural land.

“We usually use modern machines to plant barley; however, we planted barley this year by hoeing barley because of insufficient rainfall.”

Henan Ebdullah also talked about the solidarity of the villagers. “We are always in solidarity with each other to preserve our culture and traditions. Thanks to this solidarity, our grandparents planted and grew crops and now we plant and grow crops.

We wake up early every morning and when we go out to work, we see a group of men, women, neighbors, relatives and friends, who want to support us. This solidarity shows the strong bonds among the people.”

Harvesting barley together also strengthens social and women’s relations, Henan Ebdullah emphasized. “We sing together while harvesting barley by using the sickle. Even though we are tired of working, we laugh and work with joy. It is time for harvesting barley and we have to harvest them as soon as possible.”

The drastic drop in the water level in the Tishrin Dam has triggered an acute crisis in northern and eastern Syria. According to experts, the structure is only one meter away from complete collapse—with far-reaching consequences for electricity supply, agriculture, the environment, and public health.

Imad Ubeyd, a senior administrator of the Dam Authority of the Democratic Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria (DAANES), warned that the situation has reached a critical threshold. Water shortages threaten the entire supply infrastructure of the region – from electricity to drinking water. Power outages are already frequent, while stagnant water increases the risk of waterborne diseases.

International agreements not honored

The autonomous authorities cite insufficient water supplies from Turkey as the main cause. Under a bilateral agreement dating from 1987, Ankara is obliged to supply at least 500 cubic meters of water per second to Syria via the Euphrates. According to Ubeyd, however, only around 250 cubic meters per second are currently reaching Syria – half the agreed amount.

In addition, the Tishrin Dam has been severely damaged by military attacks by the Turkish army and its jihadist proxy forces, the SNA, in the region. As a result, the supply situation has deteriorated dramatically. The drop in the water level has already led to the loss of around four billion cubic meters of actively usable water volume—out of a total capacity of 14 billion cubic meters.

The current level is about six meters below the maximum, which is 304 meters above sea level. According to experts, if the water level drops by just one more meter, the dam could lose its function completely—a scenario that would bring electricity production to an abrupt halt.

Emergency measures in place – electricity rationing already a reality

In view of the precarious situation, the local government has taken measures to reduce energy consumption. Electricity is currently being distributed at intervals: public institutions receive electricity from 11 a.m. to 11 p.m., while private households are only supplied from 2 p.m. onwards.

Of the 250 cubic meters of water per second that currently reach the lake, a significant portion cannot be used effectively. According to Ubeyd, around 80 cubic meters are lost through evaporation. Another 70 cubic meters are extracted via two turbines for drinking water and agricultural supply to the city of Aleppo. In addition, around 80 cubic meters flow into an important irrigation canal every day and over 350 cubic meters continue on toward Iraq.