Category: News

The U.S. State Department’s 2020 Country Report on Human Rights Practices for Syria acknowledged the kidnappings and disappearances of women carried out by Turkish-backed Syrian National Army militias in Afrin, the highest-level acknowledgement of the practice by the U.S. government to date.

“The COI, STJ, the Violations Documentation Center (VDC), and other monitors documented a trend of TSO kidnappings of women in Afrin, where some women remained missing for years,” the report found.

The kidnapping of Arin Dali Hesen, a Yezidi woman from the village of Kimar who was abducted by the Hamza Divison in February 2020, was cited as an example of the practice, as was the May 2020 discovery of a group of women held in “degrading conditions” in an illegal prison operated by the Hamza Division.

The report also reiterated United Nations findings on other abuses women faced at the hands of armed groups, including torture, rape, and forced marriages.

The Missing Afrin Women Project urges governments to continue to condemn these abuses, to demand the release of all individuals arbitrarily detained in Afrin, and to hold perpetrators of human rights violations in Afrin— including abductions, torture, and sexual and gender-based violence— accountable for their actions.

The U.S. Department of State is “deeply concerned by reports that Turkish supported opposition (TSO) groups engaged in ‘gross violations of human rights and violations of the law of armed conflict’ in northeast Syria,” according to a report from the Department of Defense Lead Inspector General for Operation Inherent Resolve covering the period between July and September 2020.

The report stated that U.S. officials were aware of allegations of abuses including “murder, torture (including the torture of children), extortion, rape, kidnapping, abduction, looting, property appropriation, the forced displacement of residents to facilitate the resettlement of new populations, and the repeated shutting off of water access to more than 500,000 civilians.”

It cited recent findings from the United Nations Commission of Inquiry on Syria, which documented kidnappings, disappearances, and widespread sexual and gender-based violence in Turkish-controlled areas, including Afrin, in its September report.

The Department of State claimed to have raised concerns about abuses with Turkey and with Syrian opposition officials, but noted that “opposition military or police entities made no arrests or prosecutions” during the period under review. The report also noted that U.S. officials have not sanctioned any Turkish-backed armed groups in response to this pattern of impunity.

The DoD IG report for the previous quarter of this year also cited allegations of war crimes in Turkish-controlled regions, including the kidnappings and disappearances of Kurdish and Yezidi women.

United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet has called on Turkey to investigate kidnappings, disappearances, and other human rights abuses carried out by Turkish-backed armed groups in Afrin, Ras al-Ain/Sere Kaniye, and Tel Abyad.

“The UN Human Rights Office also documented the abduction and disappearance of civilians, including women and children, among other serious human rights violations. The fate of some of these detainees and abductees remains unknown,” a press release issued on September 18th by the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights stated, referencing the UN Commission of Inquiry on Syria’s most recent report.

Bachelet called on Turkey “to respect international law and to ensure that violations committed by armed groups under Turkey’s effective control cease.”

“People living in these areas whose rights have been violated are entitled to protection and a remedy. In this regard, I urge Turkey to immediately launch an impartial, transparent and independent investigation into the incidents we have verified, account for the fate of those detained and abducted by the affiliated armed groups and hold accountable those responsible for what may, in some instances, amount to crimes under international law, including war crimes,” she said.

“This is all the more vital given that we have received disturbing reports that some detainees and abductees have allegedly been transferred to Turkey following their detention in Syria by affiliated armed groups.”

To date, the Missing Afrin Women Project has documented over 150 reports of women and girls who have been kidnapped in occupied Afrin. Only about one-third of these individuals have reportedly been released.

A report from the United Nations Commission of Inquiry on Syria has found widespread evidence of torture and sexual and gender-based violence targeting civilians who have been kidnapped by Turkish-backed armed groups in occupied Afrin, and warned that many of these violations amount to war crimes.

In its Key Findings for Mandate Report A/HRC/45/31, which covered the period from January 11 to July 1, the Commission noted that: “The situation for other Kurdish women remains precarious. In addition to harassment, women and were  detained by Syrian National Army fighters, and subjected to rape and sexual violence – causing severe physical and psychological harm at the individual level, as well as at the community level, owing to stigma and cultural norms…there are reasonable grounds to believe that Syrian National Army members committed the war crimes of hostage-taking, cruel treatment and torture and rape, which may also amount to torture.”

The Commission cited disturbing examples of these violations targeting kidnapped civilians in Afrin, Ras al-Ain/Sere Kaniye, and Tel Abyad . This is the first time that the United Nations has put forward concrete evidence of these kinds of violations since the Turkish occupation of northern Syria began.

“In detention, civilians – primarily of Kurdish origin – were beaten, tortured, denied food or water, and interrogated about their faith and ethnicity…two women were detained by the Syrian National Army in November 2019, at a checkpoint operated jointly with Turkish officials in the Ra’s al-Ayn region, when returning to their homes. One of the victims described how, during interrogation, she had been threatened with rape and beaten on the head by Syrian National Army members, in the presence of Turkish officials,” noted one section of the report.

“During the period under review, cases of sexual violence against women and men at one detention facility in Afrin were documented. On two occasions, in an apparent effort to humiliate, extract confessions and instil fear within male detainees, Syrian National Army Military Police officers forced male detainees to witness the rape of a minor. On the first day, the minor was threatened with being raped in front of the men, but the rape did not proceed. The following day, the same minor was gang-raped, as the male detainees were beaten and forced to watch in an act that amounts to torture. One eyewitness recalled that Turkish officials had been present in the facility on the first day, when the rape was aborted, suggesting their presence may have acted as a deterrent. Another detainee was gang-raped in the same facility some weeks after this incident,” the Commission said.

“The Commission also received reports of forced marriage and the abduction of Kurdish women in Afrin and Ra’s al-Ayn, which primarily involved members of Division 24 (the Sultan Murad Brigade) of the Syrian National Army. In January, a woman was abducted by a member of the Brigade, who forcibly married her and divorced her shortly thereafter.”

“The Commission received further information that families from Tall Abyad chose not to return to their homes, fearing rape and sexual violence perpetrated by Syrian National Army members. At least 30 women had reportedly been raped in February alone. A former judge in Afrin confirmed that Syrian National Army fighters had been charged with rape and sexual violence carried out during house raids in the region, however none had been convicted, but rather had been released after a few days.”

To date, the Missing Afrin Women Project has documented over 150 reports of women and girls who have been kidnapped in occupied Afrin. Allegations of torture or sexual violence were reported in more than 25 of those cases.

The Missing Afrin Women Project encourages governments and international organizations to further investigate kidnappings and disappearances of women and girls in occupied Afrin, along with all other rights violations carried out by occupying forces, and to hold all perpetrators accountable.

August 30th, 2020 marks the International Day of the Victims of Enforced Disappearances.

Out of 173 women and girls allegedly kidnapped by armed groups in occupied Afrin since January 2018, just 64 have reportedly been released. The fate of 109 others is unknown.

According to the United Nations, an enforced disappearance occurs when: “persons are arrested, detained or abducted against their will or otherwise deprived of their liberty by officials of different branches or levels of Government, or by organized groups or private individuals acting on behalf of, or with the support, direct or indirect, consent or acquiescence of the Government, followed by a refusal to disclose the fate or whereabouts of the persons concerned or a refusal to acknowledge the deprivation of their liberty, which places such persons outside the protection of the law.”

With every additional day that these women and girls individuals remain in the custody of Turkish-backed armed groups in Afrin, they are at risk of torture, sexual violence, and other human rights violations. There have been multiple allegations of these crimes in incidents compiled by the Missing Afrin Women Project.

In some cases, Syrian detainees in Turkish-occupied areas have been taken to Turkey and put on trial under Turkish law, without the knowledge of their families. There have also been allegations of human trafficking and forced prostitution.

One recent incident illustrated the urgency of complete and thorough investigations for these cases. On May 28th, 2020, a video filmed during clashes between armed groups showed eight women who had been detained in an unofficial prison operated by the Hamza Division in Afrin city center.

All eight were identified as women whose disappearances had been reported between June 2018 and February 2020. None of the women’s families knew of their whereabouts prior to the video.

The family of one woman had reportedly been told that she was dead, and others had only been contacted by members of armed groups demanding ransoms.

As of August 2020, seven of the women seen in the video are still missing. Some reports allege that they are held in another unofficial detention site in Afrin, while others claim that they may have been transferred to Turkey.

The Missing Afrin Women Project calls for an end to all kidnappings, arbitrary detentions, and disappearances in occupied Afrin, and the immediate release of all those who have been subjected to these practices. We continue to encourage governments and international organizations to further investigate these incidents.

The latest U.S. Department of Defense Lead Inspector General report to the United States Congress on Operation Inherent Resolve found credible reports of kidnappings of women in occupied Afrin, as well as widespread impunity for these incidents and other abuses carried out by Turkish-backed armed groups.

The report said US officials have stated “concern regarding reports of human rights abuses in Afrin, including…kidnapping for ransom of Yezidi and Kurdish women.”

While the United States could not confirm these reports, the Inspector General report noted, officials said that “many appear to be credible.”

The report also noted that there was “no evidence that the Syrian Interim Government has consistently arrested, prosecuted, or otherwise held accountable any TSO members implicated in human rights abuses or violations of the law of armed conflict.”

To date, more than 150 women whose identities are known have been reported kidnapped by Turkish-backed armed groups in Afrin since the start of Operation Olive Branch in January 2018. Five such alleged incidents took place last month.

The Missing Afrin Women Project encourages governments and international organizations to further investigate kidnappings and disappearances of women and girls in occupied Afrin, along with all other rights violations carried out by occupying forces.

161 women and girls whose identities are known have been reported kidnapped by Turkish-backed armed groups since the start of the Turkish invasion of Afrin, Syria, the Missing Afrin Women Project has found. 

Local human rights organizations claim that hundreds of women and girls have been kidnapped during this time period. The details of most incidents are unknown, as communities fear retaliation and outside journalists and observers cannot enter the area.

The Missing Afrin Women Project compiles reports from media and human rights groups documenting these incidents, including the name of the individual, the date and location of the incident, the armed group responsible, and whether the individual has been reported released, as well as relevant details about the incident.

Cases with allegations of torture or of sexual or gender-based violence are marked as such.

In 17 incidents, reports included allegations of torture in custody. Six out of the 17 individuals who were allegedly tortured in custody were reported to have been kidnapped by one armed group, the Hamza Division.

In five incidents, reports included allegations of sexual violence in custody. Three of these cases involved minors.

Six of the women reported kidnapped were identified as Yezidis, including a mother and daughter who were both kidnapped and released twice. One Yezidi woman was reportedly tortured and forced to renounce her faith in custody.

Of the 132 cases where reports alleged that a specific armed group or element of the security forces was responsible for the kidnapping, 34 kidnappings were attributed to the Turkish-backed military police, 17 were attributed to the civilian police, and 15 were attributed to the Hamza Division. 

Reported pretexts for kidnapping include accusations of working with the Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria or the Syrian Democratic Forces, which include actions as innocuous as voting in an Autonomous Administration local election; false terrorism allegations; and documenting information about the situation in Afrin or sharing such information with outside sources. 

Only about one out of every three victims has been reported released; the whereabouts of the majority are unknown. 

Reports from the region and interviews with survivors suggest that torture, cruel and degrading treatment, and sexual and gender-based violence are pervasive and systemic, beyond the individual cases where these crimes were reported. 

“We were dozens of kidnapped women of different ages, among us were minor girls, who were always raped; one of them, named Zaloukh, died from heavy bleeding after being raped,” one survivor said. 

“They were transporting us during the night hours outside the prison, after blindfolding us, they were tricking us that they were about to execute us. They were defaming their weapons, putting their rifle barrels on our forehead, while others were shooting in the air, to terrorize us. Many of the abductees committed suicide, and others were killed in cold blood, and their bodies were thrown in the forests near the villages in Azaz, Al-Bab, Afrin and Jarabulus. Those crimes were committed against unknown abductees,” she described. 

In a video interview conducted by Hawar News Agency, a local media outlet, a woman who was kidnapped by the Military Police in June 2019 along with her daughter described similar conditions. 

“The gangs kidnapped us from our house for unknown reasons. They took us to the commercial school. There they beat us with water hoses. They insulted us. Every time we were beaten, they claimed I had connections with the YPG and was supposed to give them information, she said. 

“One of these militiamen named Abu Haydar interrogated me during the torture. They kept saying that I was part of the YPG and asked me what information I gave them. When I said that I had nothing to do with it and did not give any information, they threatened me to kill my daughter or give her drugs…Abu Haydar threatened me constantly. He threatened to kill my daughter, rape me, take pictures and distribute them to everyone. He forced me to watch the cruel torture of women. The women were tortured with electric shocks and blows with water hoses. The torture was so bad that I became ill because of the sight.” 

In another video provided by the Human Rights Organization – Afrin, a woman kidnapped by Ahrar al-Sharqiya described how militants accused her of witchcraft, threatened to sexually assault her, and demanded large sums of money. 

A video showing several women being led out of an illegal prison reportedly operated by the Hamza Division surfaced in late May after clashes between armed groups in Afrin city center. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights claimed that they were naked when they were originally found, and that they had suffered other cruel and degrading treatment in custody. Most of the women in the video have been identified by human rights monitors and news outlets, but only one has been reported released. 

The map and database will be updated with new cases as they occur and as information about earlier incidents is published. Please click here to view the data.