Syrian regime authorities began carrying out their threats to expel families who live in schools in the town of Yalda, south of the capital Damascus, days after they issued their last warning to evacuate. The schools were turned into shelters years ago.
Sowt al-Asima sources said that patrols belonging to the Babbila Police Department, and others belonging to the military security detachment in Yalda, worked to evacuate the displaced families from the Yarmouk camp and move them to shelters, indicating that the operation took place in the presence of the head of the municipal council and the mayor of Yalda.
The sources added that the patrols evacuated families from the schools, throwing them and their furniture on the sidewalks opposite the shelters in the early morning hours.
The head of the municipal council ended up extending the deadline for complete evacuation till next Friday.
The sources indicated that the Yalda shelters are home to many of the Yarmouk camp residents who fled their homes after the Islamic State took control of the area, in addition to those who were displaced during the recent military campaign on the city.
The sources confirmed that the bulk of the families living in Yalda schools do not have a breadwinner, adding that the regime intelligence arrested all the male youth and men upon their arrival in the shelters years ago.
According to the sources, the municipal council chalked up the eviction decision to the need to rehabilitate the school and render it operational again with the start of the school year, based on the district’s need for more schools in light of social distancing measures.
The security branches responsible for neighborhoods south of Damascus prevented the residents of the Yarmouk camp from returning to their homes, despite the numerous demands and repeated promises, with the exception of 150 families, who had obtained approval allowing them to return.
It turned out that most of those who were granted the right to return are families of members of the Military Security and the Fourth Division, fighters in the General Command and Fatah al-Intifada, and other Palestinian factions that are fighting alongside the regime.
This article was translated and edited by The Syrian Observer. The Syrian Observer has not verified the content of this story. Responsibility for the information and views set out in this article lies entirely with the author.
