Dozens of residents of the Turkish-controlled areas northeast of the Aleppo province went out on Sunday in demonstrations in several towns and villages, expressing their refusal to the control of the Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham” (formerly known as Nusra Front) on several towns in the region, following bloody clashes with opposition factions.
Local sources told Zaman al-Wasl that the people of the towns of “Al-Bab, Azaz, Marea, Jarablus, Al-Ra’i, and Soran went out Sunday evening in massive demonstrations and cut off several roads at the entrances to those cities and towns, in protest of the preparation of a convoy by Hay’at Tahrir Al-Sham (HTS) to a convoy. military parade to enter those areas.
The protesters expressed their absolute rejection of HTS entering their areas. They called for a general mobilization in the region against “Tahrir al-Sham,” calling for the expansion of the protests in the cities of “Al-Bab” and “Afrin,” northeast of Aleppo Governorate.
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On Saturday, the people and activists of Azaz in the northern countryside of Aleppo prevented a parade of “Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham” from entering the city after standing in the face of the column and blocking roads by firing tires, expressing their refusal to enter the area.
Meanwhile, a local relief group documented the toll of violations committed against civilians due to the rebel infighting that took place in the northern and eastern countryside of Aleppo over the past few days.
The Syria Response Coordinators Team confirmed that at least five civilians were killed and 38 civilians were injured, most of them women and children. At the same time, the area witnessed the displacement of 1,600 families from the camps and more than 1,200 other families inside cities and towns as a result of the clashes.
Also, 11 camps were targeted in the northern region due to the clashes and indiscriminate targeting, which caused damage to more than 58 tents, between partial and complete damage.
The team warned all parties against re-targeting civilians, especially in camps, because they are classified as war crimes, in addition to the inability of civilians in general and camp residents, in particular, to move from one place to another.
The response group called on all humanitarian organizations working in the area to return to work in various areas, restore humanitarian operations to civilians, and work to compensate for the damage caused by the recent events in the camps for the displaced, most notably the rehabilitation of shelters for families who lost their tents.
HTS pull out of a military convoy
According to Reuters, HTS backtracked on its plans to conduct a military convoy in areas controlled by factions of the Turkish-backed Syrian National Army (SNA) in the northern province of Aleppo.
The decision was made after activists protested in over 15 areas across the region, including Al-Bab, Afrin, Jarabulus, Azaz and Marea, blocking roads to prevent HTS from passing through. Activists called for new demonstrations on Monday and a strike.
It comes after clashes between HTS and elements of the former Free Syrian Army (FSA) after the extremist group marched into opposition territories.
During negotiations between HTS and the 3rd Corps faction of the SNA on Friday night, it was agreed that areas surrounding Afrin and Azaz would come under a unified military administration supervised by HTS, a military source from the SNA division told The New Arab’s Arabic-language service Al-Araby Al-Jadeed.
This article was 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.
