SDF: Turkish aggression left 59 civilian casualties in 2022

SDF: Turkish aggression left 59 civilian casualties in 2022
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Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) said this year has been the “bloodiest” for the Syrian population since Turkey’s invasion of the regions of Tal Abyad and Ras al-Ain back on October 2019

A total of 59 civilians, including 12 children have been killed in North and Eastern Syria during Turkey’s and its mercenaries’ attacks in 2022, Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) said.

This year has been the “bloodiest” for the Syrian population since Turkey’s invasion of the regions of Tal Abyad and Ras al-Ain back on October 2019, SDF said in its annual report on “The Violations’ Outcome of the Turkish Occupation and ISIS Mercenaries Against North and Eastern Syria.”

Since 2016, Turkey carried out three large-scale military operations into Northern Syria to combat Kurdish People’s Protection Units (YPG) that sees as an offshoot of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK). Last month, Ankara launched new aerial attacks into the region, targeting Kurdish militants, also threatening a land operation.

YPG forms the backbone of the US-backed SDF in its fight against ISIS.

SDF, a coalition of Kurds, Arabs and Assyrians was established in 2015 to defeat the Islamic State.

Turkey has targeted the region 17,596 times in 2022, SDF said. During these attacks, a total of 263 civilians, including 59 children and 44 women were injured, it said.

Turkey’s attacks that were carried out with warplanes, UAVs, artillery, and tanks, also caused “great damage” to crucial infrastructure, residential areas, roads, and farms, SDF said.

SDF said 44 Turkish soldiers and 22 ISIS members were killed in "actions carried out within the framework of legitimate defense."

According to the report, 178 fighters have lost their lives during the year, 95 of them in Turkish attacks and 69 in the fight against the Islamic State.

At the end of the report, SDF called on international community “to assume its responsibilities and duties towards the dangerous violations of the Turkish occupation and its mercenary factions against our people in NE Syria, including the Turkish-occupied territories.”