A suspected Turkish drone strike has killed nine members of a single family in eastern Aleppo, prompting widespread condemnation from human rights groups and calls for accountability. The Syrian Network for Human Rights (SNHR) reported that the strike targeted a civilian home in the village of Barkh Botan, south of Ain al-Arab (Kobani), a region controlled by the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF). Among the victims were a man, his wife, and their seven children, with two additional children injured.
SNHR stated that the attack, likely carried out by a Turkish unmanned aerial vehicle, constitutes a serious violation of international humanitarian law, citing the absence of any military presence in the targeted area. The organization urged Turkish authorities to respect international law, conduct an independent investigation, and hold those responsible for civilian casualties accountable.
While Turkey has not commented on the incident, the attack is part of a broader pattern of escalating violence in northern Syria, where drone strikes have become increasingly common amid ongoing tensions between Ankara and Kurdish-led forces.
Forced Recruitment of Children by ‘Revolutionary Youth’ Group
In a separate but equally troubling development, the SNHR has accused the “Revolutionary Youth” group—affiliated with the SDF—of forcibly recruiting minors in Kurdish-held regions of Syria. The network documented the abduction of 15-year-old Farida Khalil Mohammad in Aleppo’s Sheikh Maqsoud district on March 15, allegedly for forced conscription. She has since been denied contact with her family.
According to the SNHR, over 400 children remain under forced recruitment in SDF-run camps, despite prior commitments by the group to end the practice. Independent Kurdish human rights activist Mahmoud Allo also criticized the PKK and its affiliates, accusing them of abducting thousands of minors across Syria, Iraq, Turkey, and Iran, and subjecting them to indoctrination and violence in military camps.
Human Rights Watch has previously reported that the Revolutionary Youth recruits children as young as 12, often removing them from schools and families, then transferring them to SDF-linked armed groups. Despite a 2019 agreement with the UN to end child recruitment, SDF’s enforcement of the pact has been inconsistent. UN data show hundreds of confirmed child recruitment cases by the group between 2019 and 2023, with a sharp rise in 2022 and a concerning drop in efforts to demobilize minors.
Rights groups warn that these practices not only violate international law—including the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court—but also risk inflicting long-term psychological and physical harm on the children involved. Observers are calling for increased international scrutiny and pressure to halt the exploitation of children in Syria’s prolonged conflict.
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.
