In this news roundup on Syria, significant developments include an Israeli airstrike that killed five Syrian soldiers near the Lebanon border, highlighting ongoing tensions between Israel and Hezbollah. Meanwhile, a Kurdish security commander was killed in northeast Syria, reportedly in a Turkish drone attack, amid rising violence in the region. In another development, a coalition of 126 organizations marked the fifth anniversary of the Turkish occupation of Ras al-Ayn/Serê Kaniyê and Tall Abyad, calling for accountability and justice for displaced Syrians. Additionally, the European Court of Human Rights ruled that Cyprus violated the asylum rights of two Syrian nationals by returning them to Lebanon without proper procedures. Lastly, the UN High Commissioner for Refugees urged greater support for those fleeing the conflict in Lebanon, as thousands of Lebanese refugees and Syrians cross into Syria amid escalating violence.
Israeli strike targets residential building in Syria’s Damascus, say state media
Syria blast kills senior commander in Kurdish security forces: monitor
A war monitor said a senior commander from the security forces in northeast Syria’s semi-autonomous Kurdish-led administration was killed on Tuesday in a blast near a prison in Hasakeh province, AFP reported.
“A commander in the Kurdish security forces was killed and another person was wounded” in an explosion near the prison in Umm Fursan on the outskirts of the city of Qamishli “at the same time that a Turkish drone was flying in the area”, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said.
The commander in the Asayish security forces had played “a prominent role in leading military operations against the Islamic State group in Raqa province”, a former bastion of the jihadists in Syria, said the Britain-based Observatory.
The Asayish said in a statement that one of its “leadership comrades” was killed in Qamishli after a Turkish army drone targeted one of its vehicles at a detention centre in Umm Fursan.
The Turkish defence ministry told AFP it had no information about the attack.
A local Kurdish news agency reported “the sound of an explosion… resulting from the targeting of a car” in the area.
The incident came a day after Syria’s Kurdish authorities in Hasakeh province released 50 Syrian prisoners accused of belonging to the IS group as part of a general amnesty deal, an official had told AFP.
Five Years of Injustice: Call to End the Occupation and Restore Rights in Ras al-Ayn/Serê Kaniyê and Tall Abyad
126 Organizations issued a statement calling for ceasing the occupation, ensuring a voluntary, safe and dignified return for the IDPs, halting demographic changes, and adopting a reparations-based approach for those affected, as part of a comprehensive process that guarantees accountability and justice for the victims.
The statement marks the five-year anniversary of the Turkish occupation of Ras al-Ayn/Serê Kaniyê and Tall Abyad, initiated by the “Peace Spring” operation on October 9, 2019. It highlights the widespread violations and instability resulting from this military action, including the displacement of over 200,000 indigenous people and significant demographic changes in the region.
The statement criticizes Turkey and the Turkish-backed Syrian National Army (SNA) for their roles in bombing civilian areas, looting properties, and preventing displaced residents from returning to their homes. It reports that the indigenous population, especially Kurds, Armenians, Syriacs, and Yezidis, has drastically declined, while displaced families from other areas, including relatives of ISIS fighters, have been resettled in their homes. The statement accuses Turkey of attempting to alter the area’s demographic composition through forced displacement and Turkification, actions considered violations under international law.
The undersigned organizations urge several international bodies, including the United Nations, the U.S. government, and the European Union, to take action to end the occupation, ensure the safe return of displaced people, and hold accountable those responsible for human rights violations.
Cyprus breached right of 2 Syrian cousins to seek asylum, European court says
Europe’s top human rights court ruled on Tuesday that Cyprus violated the right of two Syrian nationals to seek asylum in the island nation after keeping them, and more than two dozen other people, aboard a boat at sea for two days before sending them back to Lebanon, ABC reported.
In a damning decision, the European Court of Human Rights said that Cypriot authorities had returned the two 41-year-old cousins from Idlib, Syria, without processing their asylum claims, making sure they would have the asylum claims processed in Lebanon or ensuring they wouldn’t be forcibly returned to Syria where they could face persecution.
“In light of the foregoing, the court finds it sufficiently established that in the present case the Cypriot authorities essentially returned the applicants to Lebanon without processing their asylum claims and without all the steps required under the Refugee Law,” the court said in its judgment.
The court also found that Cypriot authorities “caused the applicants considerable distress and feelings of humiliation of such a degree as to amount to degrading treatment,” because they hadn’t provided adequate food or water to all the passengers who had to sleep in the boat for two days without access to hygiene facilities.
UNHCR’s Grandi calls for greater support to those fleeing escalating conflict in Lebanon
The UN High Commissioner for Refugees, Filippo Grandi, concluded an urgent visit to Syria on Tuesday to mobilize support for 250,000 people who have fled the airstrikes in Lebanon and crossed into Syria.
Grandi visited the border crossing at Jdeidet Yabous. He met with Lebanese refugees and Syrians who just crossed and who described how they escaped intense Israeli bombardments that terrified their children.
“Families I spoke with had run for their lives and have no idea what tomorrow may bring after an exhausting, dangerous journey to the border. They arrive with few means and in need of urgent relief,” said Grandi.
With the main road between the Lebanese and Syrian border posts destroyed by an airstrike, people are obliged to cross on foot with their children and whatever belongings they can carry.
UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, along with the Syrian Arab Red Crescent, other UN agencies and NGOs, is at the border providing water, food items and blankets. Teams are also supporting the new arrivals with legal assistance, documentation, and advising them on administrative and other procedures.
“The new influx of people comes at a time when millions of Syrians are living in hardship and themselves need humanitarian assistance. We must scale up support for the new arrivals and the vulnerable host communities receiving them,” said Grandi.
